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THE MEASUREMENT OF 
TEACHING EFFICIENCY 



BY 

FELIX ARNOLD, Ph. D. 



S. MANDEL, PUBLISHER 
1916 



•MS 



Copyright. 1916 
By Felix Arnold 



Published January, 1916 



^ 



(to 

FEB II 1916 



i)CI.A428166 



PREFACE 

Efficiency in any work deals with details 
and particulars wliich are so numerous tliat 
standards and measures must be explicit 
and definite. To state that efficiency is the 
process by which to secure the maximum of 
result with the minimum of work and ma- 
terial is to stir up further inquiries as to 
what a good result is and how it may be 
attained. General directions and principles 
are here of little use for quiet effective ac- 
tion, and for products economically brought 
forth. On this account, any practical scheme 
for measuring the efficiency of teaching must 
be extremely detailed and specific. 

In making five divisions for most of the 
merits there is no assumption on my part 
that any magic potency inheres in this num- 
ber. It is simply convenient for purposes of 
classification, and sufficient for the detail 
necessary in distributing the constituent ex- 
cellencies of any unit. Whatever unit or 
standard is taken can readily be divided into 
as many parts as one desires, whether the 
number be three, four, five six, etc. The 



ui 



PREFACE 

divisions and the enumerations outlined in 
the book have been found effective in meas- 
uring practical, classroom work and will be 
found inclusive enough to deal specifically 
with any situation which may arise. The 
categories employed have been kept as close 
as possible to the material, work, and results 
common in the school. 

Due to the possibility offered in the New 
York Public School System for experimen- 
tation and investigation, and to the Lehr- 
freiJieit to be found there, I have been able 
to develop the various standards presented, 
and to test them with teachers of various 
grades of efficiency or deficiency. I have 
had opportunity to make a close pedagogical 
study of almost two hundred teachers for 
this purpose. Two pamphlets which have 
been helpful are Tests of Efficiency in 
Teaching, by Superintendent E. B. Shallow, 
and Document No. 5, 1914, On Examining, 

Training and Selecting Teachers, by Direc- 
tor A. Shiels of the Division of Research, 
Department of Education, New York. 

Felix Arnold 



IV 



co:n'tents 

PART P^CE 

I. Introduction. 

1. On measurement in general 3 

2. On methods of teaching in general 12 

3. On application and technique in general.. 22 
Tables ^^ 

II. The Teaching Process — Instruction and 
Discipline. 

1. Preparation 39 

Topical outline and values ^-3 

Common errors 44 

2. Incentives ^^ 

Topcal outline and values 53 

Common errors 54 

3. Visual appeal 55 

Topical outline and values 61 

Common errors ^2 

4. Oral appeal 6 i 

Topical outline and values 74 



Common errors 



5. Manual appeal 80 

Topical outline and values 85 

'Common errors 87 

6. Application and tecknique 91 

III. Personality— Co-Operation. 

1. Personality in general -7 

2. Towards pupils 29 

Topical outline and values 1C4 

Common deficiencies 105 

3. Towards visitors HO 

Topical outline and values 116 

Common deficiencies 117 

4. Towards the school 120 

Topical outline and values 125 

Common deficiencies 126 

5. School activities 129 

Topical outline and values 132 

6. Records and reports 133 

Topical outline and values 134 

7. The negative instance . ^ 136 



CONTENTS. 



PART 



PAGE 



IV. Kesults Of Insthuction — Expression. 

1. Oral expression 141 

Topical outline and values 142 

Common weaknesses 142 

2. Appreciation — Study of the text-book 145 

Topical outline and values 148 

Common weaknesses 148 

3. 'Manual expression 149 

Topical outline and values 152 

Common weaknesses 152 

4. Motor Expression 155 

Topical outline and values 156 

Common weaknesses 156 

5. Written expression 158 

Topical outline and values — ^Form 159 

Common weaknesses 159 

Topical outline and values — Content 161 

Common weaknesses 161 

Results of Instruction — Arithmetic. 

1. ^Addition 165 

2. Subtraction 171 

3. Multiplication 175 

4. Division 179 

5. Fractions 182 

6. Decimals 186, 

7. Compound numbers 188 

8. Percentage 191 

9. Indirect cases 193 

10. Metric System 195 

11. Mensuration 196 

12. General suggestions 198 

Common weaknesses » 199 

Results of Instruction — Content of Other 
Subjects. 

1. Kinds of knowledge 202 

2. History and Civics 210 

3. Geography 214 

4. The Study of Nature 215 

5. Language 217 

6. Manual work 223 

7. General Suggestions 224 



VI 



CONTEXTS 

PART PAGE 

V. Results of Discipline. 

1. Personnel 229 

2. Matei ial 231 

3. Routine 234 

4. Response 238 

5. Class Activities 244 

6. Social Morality 250 

VI. Appendices. 

A. Three Rules of Inspection 259 

B. A Case in Point 265 

C. Elliott Scheme of 'Measurement 272 

D. Ohio State School Survey 276 



VIJ 



I 

INTRODUCTION 



I 

ON MEASUREMENT IN GENERAL 

It is a popular superstition that human 
action, personality, and behavior, will be 
penned up and hindered when measured by 
logical categories and fixed units. But, just 
as the pound weight has not interfered with 
the production of butter, and the yardstick 
has not obstructed improvement in the man- 
ufacture of cotton or other goods, so methods 
in teaching, it may be assumed, will be free 
to go their own way, even when fixed stand- 
ards are applied. The spirit can still go 
whither it listeth. Measurement must meek- 
ly follow, gather up the results, and give 
them a value. Analysis, in fact, will show 
that the method in great degree determines 
the standard, and may even become the 
standard which will be applied on future 
occasions. In the spiritual as in the material 
world, nature can be conquered only by sub- 
mission. 



TEACHING EFFICIENCY 

"Weights and measures call to mind such 
units as pound, quart, or yard, and imply 
definite amoimts and quantities. A pound 
of steak is a pound of steak, a quart of milk 
is a quart of milk, a yard of wool is a yard 
of wool, here or elsewhere, now and to come 
— with, however, a qualification. The steak 
weighs a pound, but only for some purpose, 
as, exchange, food value, comparison, or 
other intent. The pound of steak, as such, 
must therefore be further qualified. It must 
have not more than a certain amount of con- 
nective tissue, or bone, or fat. It must be of 
a required age, and may be otherwise cir- 
cumscribed. So, too, with milk. Milk is not 
only measured by the quart, but it must also 
be of grade A or grade B^ must be of limited 
age, and without chalk or other added in- 
gredients. With woollen cloth, the goods 
must be all wool and of a yard or other de- 
termined width. Expert knowledge of the 
highest type is often demanded in apprais- 
ing and evaluating qualitative characteris- 



ON MEASUREMENT 

tics of substances which, to the man behind 
the counter, are measured only by the yard, 
or pound, or other measure. 

Serial valuation is implicit in practi- 
cally all measurement, whether this be by 
volume, weight, length, or amount. To re- 
turn to other homely instances, l&ve pounds 
of chicken are not only five pounds of 
chicken, but in addition the fowl must fit 
somewhere in the series : soup — fricassee — 
roast — capon. Tea likewise must fit in a 
scale of values determined only by a highly 
paid tester. So the story runs. Determina- 
tion of such series and ability to give a sub- 
stance its place in it require in most cases a 
specialized training and ability. Though, 
for the shop keeper and for the consumer, 
this qualitative valuation has been done, it 
can not be ignored. The pound, yard, or 
quart tell but a part of the story. 

Any judgment which we make, as good or 
bad, or more or less, implies a series of 
values and placement within the series. Gen- 



TEACHING EFFICIENCY 

eral knowledge is crude and often contains 
for its standard the two or three values, as, 
lad — good — excellent. More specific knowl- 
edge not only extends the series, but also 
adds qualifying characteristics to its mem- 
bers, and closely analyses each one. The ex- 
pert is so trained that he can define accu- 
rately the different units in a series, and 
give each of them a value. 

Crude judgments, as, good — fair — poor, 
etc., are passed upon work in the school and 
the classroom. The judgment, poor — good — 
excellent, or, satisfactory — unsatisfactory, 
may in some cases be correct, and in most 
cases be honest. Honesty, however, does not 
preclude the possibility of ignorance or lack 
of training, nor does it always include a free 
and unbiased mind. The varying moods in 
which the supervising official finds himself, 
the different influences at play on various 
occasions, and the overwhelming subjective 
and dictatorial attitude which may sway 
judgments of classroom work, render this 



ON MEASUREMENT 

crude valuation and appraising of little 
worth. Especially is tliis the case when 
standards (if any at all are present) are not 
known to the teacher who is being judged. 

The teacher does not object to criticism. 
The teacher does not frown upon definite, 
objective standards. The teacher does not 
fear measurement according to such known 
standards. But what she does dread is the 
mysterious inspection, which flows no one 
knows from what source, which leads any- 
where but to sweetness and light, and which 
leaves her shaken, often to the extent of hys- 
teria. A pillar of flame by night would in- 
spire her with less alarm. 

Measurement of school work by results 
has fallen on evil days because due regard 
has not always been given to the apparently 
unmeasurable processes and methods used in 
attaining these results. Properly relegated 
to its place in a more complete scheme of 
valuation, in which the process is also 
judged, measurement by results is helpful 



TEACHING EFFICIENCY 

and can not be ignored. The result and 
the process both are lit subjects for meas- 
urement. 

The chief difficulty in any scheme of valu- 
ation lies in measuring, by known, objective 
standards, the different phases of the teach- 
ing process. Properly to evaluate the 
teacher's presentation of her work, it is nec- 
essary to analyse carefully her preparation, 
the appeals which she uses, and the incen- 
tives which she calls into play. Each aspect, 
moreover, can be given a value, according as 
it fills a position in a series of excellencies. 
For example, preparation will yield a series 
somewhat as follows : 

(1) No preparation 

(2) Plan hook and nothing else 

(3) Plan hook + material at hand 

(4) Plan hook + material + proper se- 

quence and organization 

(5) Plan hoolv + material -\- sequence and 

organization + proynptness 

8 



ON MEASUREMENT 

Judgment of the teacher's preparation of 
her work can not now be an offhand, **Very 
poor, " ^ ^ Good, ' ' or ^ ^ Excellent. ' ' It must be 
a simple statement of facts, or rather a 
checking up under known categories and in 
a definite series, with placement in one of 
the five positions. If each position is given 
a value, a rating can be given according to 
the following scheme : 

Position— 12 3 4 5 
Rating— 25 50 75 100 

Arranged more conveniently for purposes 
of supervision, the following order results : 

Preparation of work 100 

Plan 25 

Material 25 

Sequence and organization 25 
Promptness 25 

Each of these four merits may be further 
analvzed and each detail allowed a value. 

Measurement of school work on its quali- 
tative side is made possible by arranging a 



TEACHING EFFICIENCY 

series of excellencies, (standardization), 
and by checking up the work and giving it a 
place and a value according to its position 
in the series. Measurement of school work 
on its quantitative side is the valuation com- 
monly known as ^measurement by results,' 
that is, it is the correction of work on a per- 
centage basis. It is all very simple, and 
affords nothing new as far as the aspects 
themselves are concerned. It is merely the 
serial arrangement, organization, and valu- 
ation, which may seem new. 

Presentation of the lesson, results of in- 
struction, results of discipline, personality 
of the teacher, all these can be treated objec- 
tively in the manner suggested. The value 
of such serial treatment is almost self-evi- 
dent. It ties down the one who inspects to a 
definite procedure, and shuts out as far as 
possible any subjective, irresponsible judg- 
ment. A series of excellencies known to the 
teacher guides her in right practice. A series 
of objective standards allows of cooperation, 

10 



ON MEASUREMENT 

mutual understanding, and appeal to others, 
where undue severity of judgment is exer- 
cised on the basis of the facts checked up. 
No one can well appeal a flat fiat of an official 
superior. But justice may become more of a 
reality when not only the judgment is given, 
but also the data on which it is based. 



11 



II 

ON METHODS OF TEACHING IN 
GENERAL 

In the teaching process, two individuals, 
the teacher and the pupil, are engaged upon 
a third object, the material in instruction 
and discipline. We have a triangle, as it 
were, but a triangle of which the three sides 
are not equal. The child is still in leading 
strings, and the material is subject to selec- 
tion, simplification, and arrangement. Fur- 
ther considerations will involve the number 
of pupils to be taught in a single class, and 
the number of grades to be organized in a 
single school. 

On the one hand, the child conditions the 
method which is to be used in presenting the 
material to him. He will be able to progress, 
only as he is able to see, hear, talk, manipu- 
late, remember, think, feel, and in general, 
react and express himself to the fullest ex- 

12 



ON METHODS 

tent of his powers. Moreover, he will be 
found to react better under some condi- 
tions than he will under others. He is more 
responsive when his feelings have been 
touched, his desires aroused, his ambition 
stirred, or his experience called into play. 
Physical and hj^gienic conditions may fur- 
ther support instruction in this connection. 
On the other hand, the material and the sub- 
ject matter form an integral part of the 
method of presentation. Organization, ar- 
rangement, gradation, etc., are a prerequis- 
ite to success. 

On the side of presentation in instruction 
and discipline, we have therefore the follow- 
ing aspects of the teaching process : 

Preparation of work 
Use of incentives 
Visual appeal 
Oral appeal 
Manual appeal 

It is to be noted that these categories are 
objective and refer to what the teacher does, 

13 



TEACHING EFFICIENCY 

Other categories which are in use often con- 
fuse mental processes within the mind of the 
pupil, with device and method emploj^ed by 
the teacher. Induction and deduction, for 
example, refer in part to thought processes 
of the children, and as such are rather prin- 
ciples which underlie and condition method, 
than method itself. Other expressions, as, 
the recitation lesson, the study period, ap- 
preciation, problem work, etc., are either in- 
cluded in the above headings, as, oral ap- 
peal, or are to be considered a result of in- 
struction, under one or more of the headings 
given below, as, expression. 

Motor expression, dramatization, and the 
like may be considered a result of instruc- 
tion, rather than a part of the presentation, 
as such. If a motor presentation is given 
for the benefit of the class, it becomes a vis- 
ual appeal, and subject to consideration 
under that heading. In fact, visual and oral 
appeals are necessary before much motor 
expression can take place. 

14 



ON METHODS 

Whether a subject is developed, reviewed, 
or drilled, it makes its impress through much 
the same avenues, visual, oral, or manual. In 
drill, the essence is repetition, and in review 
it is organization. Drill emphasizes f ocali- 
zation upon a few topics, appeal to all the 
members of the class, and stimulation of the 
pupils as many times as possible through as 
many appeals as possible. Review empha- 
sizes logical system and order in the arrange- 
ment of material, and employs condensation, 
topical outline, and logical or other sequence. 

After the teacher has presented the sub- 
ject properly to the pupils, one naturally 
looks for definite results. It has long been 
the custom to hold oral and written expres- 
sion synonymous with much of the language 
work. And there were always added con- 
ditioning directions to the effect that Eng- 
lish should also be considered in recitations 
in other subjects, as, arithmetic, geography, 
etc. It seems better, however, to make 'ex- 
pression' the larger term and * language' 

15 



TEACHING EFFICIENCY 

only one of its different forms. For in- 
stance, we may have valuable expression in 
the different manual exercises, dramatiza- 
tions, and the like. Expression, as such, can 
be considered one of the chief results of in- 
struction, without restriction by any such 
limitations as inhere in language. Of the 
different forms of expression, we have : 

Oral expression 

Appreciation and study of text-book 
Manual expression 
Motor expression 
Written expression 
Form 
Content 
Further results in instruction call for the 
content of the different subjects of the grade. 
These are the usual school subjects, namely : 

Arithmetic 

History and civics 

Geography 

Study of nature 

Language and music 

Manual work, penmanship, etc. 

16 



ON METHODS 

Divisions and subdivisions can be given 
according to the extent to which details are 
required. It is to be noted that manual 
work, and the like, have a content value 
apart from their merits as expression. 

Results in discipline, so called, are simi- 
larly to be expected as a consequence of effec- 
tive development, training, and practice. 
These results include : 

Personnel of the children 

Material in the classroom 

Routine 

Response 

Class activities 

If social morality is a school subject and is 
treated specifically like other school sub- 
jects, as, arithmetic or geography, topics can 
be arranged and organized for purposes of 
checking up. 

In so far as the teacher is before the pupils 
during school sessions and should set an ex- 
ample of correct behavior in many details, 

17 



TEACHING EFFICIENCY 

her personality, considered in its relation to 
the pupils, becomes of considerable moment. 
Further relationships branch out and in- 
clude reaction towards the parents of the 
children, towards colleagues within the 
school, superior officials, etc. Such relations 
materially react on classroom instruction 
and discipline. The close interest now man- 
ifested in the welfare, progress, and num- 
bers of the children under the ever expand- 
ing wing of the school, necessitates an accur- 
ate keeping of many records. Here, too, the 
personality of the teacher makes for effici- 
ency or inefficiency, as the case may be. 
Enumerating the different directions in 
which the teacher's personality should be an 
influence, we have the following : 

Towards the pupils 
Towards visitors 
Towards the school 
School activities 
Records and reports 

18 



ON IVIETHODS 

Such aspects as self -improvement, studies, 
etc., may be counted in under the head of 
personality towards the school. 

A category which is now more popular 
than ^personality' in present-day use, is ^co- 
operation/ Cooperation is the same thing 
as personality in its dynamic aspects, and 
places greater emphasis upon the different 
relationships, as, Cooperation with pupils, 
Cooperation with visitors. Cooperation with 
colleagues, and so on. But in essence, per- 
sonality dynamically considered, and co- 
operation are much the same. 

The very fewest number of excellencies 
which should be rated in testing the effici- 
ency of the teacher, are four, namely : 

Presentation in instruction and discipline 
Results of instruction 
Results of discipline 
Personality and cooperation 

A more complete scheme will include the fol- 
lowing : 

19 



TEACHING EFFICIENCY 

Presentation 
Preparation 
Use of incentives 
Visual appeal 
Oral appeal 
Manual appeal 

Personality (cooperation) 
Towards the pupils 
Towards visitors 
Towards the school 
School activities 
Records and reports 

Results of discipline 

Personnel of the pupils 

Material 

Routine 

Response 

Class activities 

Results of instruction 
Expression 
Oral 

Appreciation and study 
Manual 
Motor 
Written 



20 



ON JVIETHODS 

Content of subjects 
Arithmetic 
History and civics 
Geography and nature 
Language and music 
Manual tvork, penmanship, etc, 
(Social morality) 

Still further details can be worked out as the 
folloYNTLng pages will show. 



21 



Ill 

ON APPLICATION AND TECHNIQUE 
IN GENERAL 

To ensure cooperation between principal 
and teacher, and to facilitate progress and 
improvement in the efficiency of teaching, it 
is necessary for the principal to employ a 
standard which applies to all, and for the 
teacher to know exactly what that standard 
is. Whatever blanks, etc., are used in rating 
and checking up classroom work should 
therefore be placed in the hands of all the 
teachers concerned. It is advisable, more- 
over, for the teacher to check up her own 
work from time to time, and to make ar- 
rangements by which two teachers can visit 
and give each other ratings according to the 
blanks in use. 

For the principal, printed blanks may be 
considered one of the essentials in school 
control. The head of the school usually be- 

22 



APPLICATION AND TECHNIQUE 

gins with considerable enthusiasm to give 
model lessons, to write directions for the 
benefit of new teachers, to outline plans, and 
to correct error. These, however, soon as- 
sume a monotonous uniformity. The same 
suggestions are needed again and again. New 
teachers floimder about in much the same 
helpless fashion. Weakness and error fol- 
low about the same general lines. Often the 
principal will give up the never-ceasing, 
Sisyphus-like occupation of improving the 
work of teachers. He may allow matters 
Ho settle themselves,' may lean back, and 
find everything Very fine.' Sometimes he 
will promulgate a long list of rules, from 
number one, on, with subdivisions and de- 
tails, which are handed, en hloc, to the teach- 
er. Again, he may fear to bind himself in 
writing, and deliver oral suggestions, which 
soon become distorted in the reminiscent 
consciousness of the teacher. What is need- 
ed, is not a descriptive catalogue of merits 
and demerits, given in extenso, but rather 

28 



TEACHING EFFICIENCY 

a system of properly organized categories 
wMcIi are based on sound principles and 
which have been tested in practice. Printed 
blanks carry with them their own correc- 
tions, the headings automatically pointing 
out to the teacher which excellencies she has 
violated, or which merits she has attained in 
her work. If the loose leaf form of blank is 
used, a carbon copy can be made, and this 
should be given to the teacher. Unless this 
is done, the inspection is of little use in im- 
proving the teacher's efficiency. 

When an inspection is made by the prin- 
cipal, he quietly enters the room, and with 
the teacher's permission, begins to check up, 
evaluate, and record merits and demerits. 
The blank which deals with the excellencies 
of the teaching process requires from 5 to 15 
minutes to check and fill out, depending upon 
the number of details recorded. In this 
blank, all the merits may not apply, and so 
need not be touched upon. For example, a 
lesson may call for only oral work. In this 



APPLICATION AND TECHNIQUE 

case only the headings under Oral Appeal 
will be used, with perhaps some of the head- 
ings under Preparation, or Incentives, In 
the beginning, numerical values need not be 
given. Such marks as cross, (x), question 
mark, (?), dash, ( — ), or check, (^), may 
be employed according as there is a defi- 
ciency needing correction, a merit which is 
in doubt, an excellence which is not required 
by the lesson, and so does not figure in the 
report, or a value which is present and fully 
credited. Later, numerical ratings can be 
given. The same general method of proce- 
dure holds with the blank which considers 
the Results of Discipline, N"o more than 5 
or 10 minutes are needed to check up a class. 
Entries under some of the details of Routine, 
Response, and Class Activities do not re- 
quire checking up in the room at all, and can 
be calculated in the office. The blank on 
Personality can be filled out in the office, and 
so can some of the items on the blanks which 
deal with Results of Instruction, 

25 



TEACHING EFFICIENCY 

In the use of the blanks, two questions 
which arise, are : How often should inspec- 
tions be made? and, How many blanks of 
each kind should the teacher receive? On 
the assiunption that there exists a fairly imi- 
form grade of efficiency throughout the 
school, there will be needed for each teacher 
one blank a term on Personality, from one to 
three blanks on The Teaching Process, from 
one to three on Results in Discipline, one to 
three on Results in Expression, and one for 
each test given for Results in Content. Tests 
in content may be given to the whole school 
once each month or two, according to the 
time spent on the subject, as, arithmetic once 
a month, geography or history every other 
month, etc. The class teacher should check 
herself up mentally, and reflect upon her 
work, substituting month for term, and weeh 
for month, in the time values given in the 
preceding suggestions. 

Variation from this general method is 
necessary when deficiencies exist and are 

26 



APPLICATION AND TECHNIQUE 

found. A weakness which has been recorded 
should be followed up. In such a case two 
or three blanks on the same topic, and indi- 
cating the same weakness or deficiency 
should be sufficient to secure correction be- 
fore a final inspection is made and the term 
rating given. For example, the same sub- 
ject may be inspected for from three to five 
days in succession; two or three notes on 
personality may be required ; results in dis- 
cipline may require from three to a dozen or 
more visits before the term is half way over ; 
or some special item, as. Incentives, Voice 
and Manner, Oral Appeal, etc., may need 
correction several times. Such corrections 
are emphasized when they are repeated in 
exactly the same words, and with exactly the 
same ratings, where no improvement is evi- 
dent. Two or three such suggestions are 
enough to effect a cure, without any com- 
ment or oral expostulation of the least kind 
by the principal. 

27 



TEACHING EFFICIENCY 

What is to be done if that rara avis, the 
teacher who combines inefficiency with con- 
tumacy and aggressiveness, is found in the 
school ? The blank on Personality is inclu- 
sive enough to record deficiencies under the 
headings of Helpfulness, Patience, Cour- 
tesy, Ability to listen, etc. Further demerits 
will probably crop up in the written work, 
in the preparation of work, and in the use 
of incentives. These should be recorded. 
The same method of inspection which is used 
in the case of the other teachers, should ap- 
ply to the particular teacher imder observa- 
tion. At least several ratings should be 
given, with positive suggestions as to means 
of correction. There will be no argument 
nor ^fuss' of any kind with a teacher, if the 
principal simply listens, without answering. 
In such a case, it is a question of evidence, 
and not a matter of personal argument. The 
teacher who takes a kind of pride in ^assert- 
ing herself,' in giving an argument, in let- 
ting people know, etc., will then find herself, 

28 



APPLICATION AND TECHNIQUE 

as far as any results are concerned, beating 
in the void her fluttering wings in vain. Once 
an individual receives definite instructions 
in writing, ignorance can not be an excuse, 
violation implies lack of good will, and all 
responsibility rests Vv^th the one who inten- 
tionally fails to carr}^ out suggestions. The 
duty of the principal ends when he has de- 
livered his directions, given aid, and checked 
up the results. 

In calculating results, the basis taken will 
depend upon the nature of the work in- 
spected. If only four or five pupils are ex- 
amined, (five best, five middle, or five worst), 
a fifth will be deducted for each one who 
misses. If the whole number of pupils pres- 
ent forms the basis, as in inspection of the 
Personnel of the children, an exact rating 
can be rapidly worked out by means of the 
tables on pages 33-35. For example, 20 counts 
out of 100 are allowed for condition of shoes. 
If there are 31 pupils present, and 8 have un- 
shined shoes, each one will count 0.6452, ac- 



29 



TEACHING EFFICIENCY 

cording to Table 10-34, page 33. The 8 will 
count 5.16 out of the total of 20, which will 
leave 14.84 as the rating of the class on con- 
dition of shoes. A similar use of the tables 
can be made in correction of sets of composi- 
tion, and the like, where the register or the 
attendance is taken as the basis in calcula- 
tion. For example, if 9 out of 34 papers are 
marred by blots or blurs, by reference to the 
value of 1 out of 34 as given in the table, 
(page 33), 9X0.5882, will have to be de- 
ducted from the total of 20 counts allowed 
for the merit in question, which gives 20 — 
5.29=14.71. 

Occasionally it is necessary to arrange the 
classes in a series, and form four, five, or ten 
groups. If a total of 20 is allowed for an 
excellence, 5, 4, or 2 becomes the unit of in- 
crease from the lowest group to the highest. 
For example, if there are 35 classes in the 
school, these can be grouped in 4 divisions of 
merit, the highest being given 20, the second 
highest, 15, the third, 10, and the last, 5. In 

30 



APPLICATION AND TECHNIQUE 

the first division there will be 9 classes, in 
the second, 9, in the third, 9, and in the last, 8. 
Such a method of valuation applies to room 
decoration, to absence of pupils, etc. The 
series in attendance of pupils can be ar- 
ranged according to the per cent of attend- 
ance obtained for a given period, week, 
month, or term. 

In checking up work on a percentage basis, 
as, in arithmetic, or spelling, the average, 
median, or mode may be used. The average 
is the common measure employed by teach- 
ers. The totals of each paper are added up 
and divided by the number of cases. Thus 
9, 9, 8, 8, 8, 7, 7, 6, 5, 4, 4, 3, added up give a 
total of 78, divided by the number in the 
series, 12, give an average of 6.5. If we 
count down to the middle case, the sixth, the 
median value, 7, will result. The median is 
not affected by extremes, that is, by 100 's or 
O's, but it is not a good measure imless there 
is considerable variation in the results. 
When the results show a massing about a 

31 



TEACHING EFFICIENCY 

few values, the mode is a good measure. 
Thus in the series, 10, 10, 9, 8, 8, 8, 8, 8, 7, 7, 
7, 7, 7, 6, 5, 5, the mode, 7 — 8, would be a good 
valuation to take. Where a single merit 
is to be tested, as, general appearance of 
papers in drawing or construction work, the 
papers may be arranged in a series, and the 
middle one selected as representative of the 
whole set. For more accurate testing, how- 
ever, it is better to mark the papers on a 
numerical basis, giving values to the differ- 
ent merits which inhere in the work. 



32 



TABLE: 10-34 

VALUE OF 1 OUT OF 10 — 34, 
WHEN THE TOTAL IS 100, 25 OR 20 



No. 


100 


25 


20 


10 


10.0000 


2.5000 


2.0000 


11 


9.0909 


2.2727 


1.8182 


12 


8.3333 


2.0833 


1.6667 


13 


7.6923 


1.9231 


1.5385 


14 


7.1429 


1.7857 


1.4286 


15 


6.6667 


1.6667 


1.3333 


16 


6.2500 


1.5625 


1.2500 


17 


5.8823 


1.4706 


1.1765 


18 


5.5556 


1.3889 


1.1111 


19 


5.2632 


1.3158 


1.0526 


20 


5.0000 


1.2500 


1.0000 


21 


4.7619 


1.1905 


0.9524 


22 


4.5454 


1.1364 


0.9091 


23 


4.3478 


1.0869 


0.8696 


24 


4.1667 


1.0417 


0.8333 


25 


4.0000 


1.0000 


0.G000 


26 


3.8461 


0.9615 


0.7692 


27 


3.7037 


0.9259 


0.7407 


28 


3.5714 


0.8928 


0.7143 


29 


3.4483 


0.8621 


0.6897 


30 


z.iUi 


0.8333 


0.6667 


31 


3.2258 


0.8064 


0.6452 


32 


3.1250 


0.7812 


0.6250 


33 


3.0303 


0.7576 


0.6061 


34 


2.9412 


0.7353 


0.5882 



33 



TABLE: 35—59 

VALUE OF I OUT OF 35 — 59, 
WHEN THE TOTAL IS 100, 25 OR 20 



No. 


100 


25 


20 


35 


2.8571 


0.7143 


0.5714 


36 


2.7778 


0.6944 


0.5555 


37 


2.7027 


0.6757 


0.5405 


38 


2.6316 


0.6579 


0.5263 


39 


2.5641 


0.6410 


0.5128 


40 


2.5000 


0.6125 


0.5000 


41 


2.4390 


0.6097 


0.4878 


42 


2.3809 


0.5952 


0.4762 


43 


2.3256 


0.5814 


0.4651 


44 


2.2727 


0.5682 


0.4545 


45 


2.2222 


0.5555 


0.4444 


46 


2.1739 


0.5435 


0.4348 


47 


2.1277 


0.5319 


0.4255 


48 


2.0833 


0.5208 


0.4167 


49 


2.0408 


0.5102 


0.4082 


50 


2.0000 


0.5000 


0.4000 


51 


1.9608 


0.4902 


0.3922 


52 


1.9231 


0.4808 


0.3846 


53 


1.8868 


0.4717 


0.3774 


54 


1.8518 


0.4629 


0.3704 


55 


1.8182 


0.4545 


0.3636 


56 


1.7857 


0.4464 


0.3571 


57 


1.7544 


0.4386 


0.3509 


58 


1.7241 


0.4310 


0.3448 


59 


1.6949 


0.4237 


0.3390 



34 



TABLE: 60-84 

VALUE OF I OUT OF 60—84, 
WHEN THE TOTAL IS 100, 25 OR 20 



No. 


100 


25 


20 


60 


1.6667 


0.4167 


U33i 


61 


1.6393 


0.4098 


0.3279 


62 


1.6129 


0.4032 


0.3226 


63 


1.5873 


0.3968 


0.3175 


64 


1.5625 


0.3906 


0.3125 


65 


1.5385 


0.3846 


0.3077 


66 


1.5151 


0.3788 


0.3030 


67 


1.4925 


0.3731 


0.2985 


68 


1.4706 


0.3676 


0.2941 


69 


1.4493 


0.3623 


0.2898 


70 


1.4286 


0.3571 


0.2857 


71 


1.4084 


0.3521 


0.2817 


72 


1.3889 


0.3472 


0.2778 


73 


1.3699 


0.3425 


0.2740 


74 


1.3513 


0.3378 


0.2703 


75 


1.3333 


0.3333 


0.2667 


76 


1.3158 


0.3289 


0.2631 


77 


1.2987 


0.3247 


0.2597 


78 


1.2820 


0.3205 


0.2564 


79 


1.2658 


0.3164 


0.2532 


80 


1.2500 


0.3125 


0.2500 


81 


1.2346 


0.3086 


0.2469 


82 


1.2195 


0.3049 


0.2439 


83 


1.2048 


0.3012 


0.2410 


84 


1.1905 


0.2976 


0.2381 





35 



II 

THE TEACHING PROCESS 
INSTRUCTION— DISCIPLINE 



IV 

THE TEACHING PROCESS 

§1. Preparation 

The plan of work used by the teacher may 
consist of written notes in a book, of clip- 
pings, or of cards. The work for the day 
should in some manner be indicated. When 
a daily plan book is used, an outline of the 
lessons is indicated, with the time to be ap- 
portioned, and the method, (development, 
drill, review, or test) , to be followed. When 
cards are used they are shuiKed and ar- 
ranged under the subject headings to be 
taken up during the day. Whether the daily 
plan or the card system is employed, each is 
dependent for its relation to the classroom 
routine upon a schedule or program of work 
usually found at the back of the teacher's 
desk. Such a program contains an arrange- 
ment of subjects by days and lesson periods. 

39 



TEACHING EFFICIENCY 

A complete plan will have the following 
series of excellencies : (1) an outline of the 
work stated in general terms; (2) specific 
types and topics indicated under each sul- 
ject to he taught during the day, as, type 
examples, sentences, etc., facts or outlines in 
geography, plans in draiving, m>aterial for 
story telling, etc; (3) the time of the day at 
tvhich each lesson is to start, and the method 
which is to he followed, ivhether develop- 
ment, drill, review, or test; (4) the whole 
neatly written and ruled; and (5) a daily 
program and a term plan to which the daily 
plan can he referred. 

Realization of such a plan requires in part 
specific material, and such blackboard work 
as can be prepared before the children are 
to take up the lesson. The material usually 
needed includes paper, pencils, ink, pens, 
books, maps, specimens, apijaratus, etc. It 
is not enough to have them. They should be 
ready for distribution or use for the day's 
work. 



40 



THE TEACHING PROCESS 

The series under the heading of material 
will be : (1) llackhoard, chalk, rubbers, etc.; 
(2) objects, etc, needed by the teacher, as, 
map, specimen, apparatus, etc.; (3) objects 
needed by the pupils, as, paper, pencils, 
pens, etc.; (4) arrangem^ent and care before 
distribution; and (5) distribution. 

Inherent in a properly arranged plan and 
carefully prepared material are sequence 
and organization. This implies logical or- 
ganization and psychological graduation. It 
demands due regard for possible interrela- 
tion of subject matter with other subjects, 
and for some correlation with the environ- 
ment and the life history of the pupils. It 
requires gradation of work and a looking 
before and after as far as the children are 
concerned. First the subject is cut up into 
a number of general divisions. The topics 
may be arranged by weeks or by months. 
Then further subdivision will yield the 
method- wholes to be taken up in single les- 
sons. The material must be graded, step by 

41 



TEACHING EFFICIENCY 

step. Should interrelations be possible be- 
tween subjects or topics, these are to be indi- 
cated. References to the daily life of the 
pupils, current events, general information 
which the children may have — anything 
which will lighten up and vivify the lesson — 
are to be noted. 

Sequence and organization, therefore, in- 
clude (1) logical division of sithject matter 
and arrangement hy months and weeks; (2) 
interrelation hetween subjects; (3) correla- 
tion with the pupils' environment and life 
history; (4) correlation with the pupils' 
stage of development and previous instruc- 
tion; and (5) gradation of sulject matter. 

Finally, in every lesson a reasonable 
amount of promptness can be expected. If, 
for example, a lesson is planned for 10 
o'clock, delay after that will lower the value 
of the preparation as far as promptness is 
concerned. If a lesson of 40 minutes is 10 
minutes late, it seems fair to deduct 10 — 40 
from the full value credited to promptness. 

42 



THE TEACHING PROCESS 

As a matter of justice to an enthusiastic 
teacher, 5, 10, or 15 minutes may be allowed 
overtime for a preceding lesson of 15, 30, or 
45 minutes. Such adjusted time may be 
made the basis for the reckoning, and de- 
lay after that may be counted against the 
teacher. 

If we allow 100 points for preparation, 
and 25 points for each of its main divisions, 
we shall have : 

Preparation 100 

Plan 25 

Material 25 

Sequence and organization 25 
Promptness 25 

If further particulars are required, the fol- 
lowing scheme will apply : 

Plan 25 

General outline of ivorU 5 

Types and topics indicated 5 

Time and method indicated 5 

Neatness and arrangement 5 

Daily program 5 

43 



TEACHING EFFICIENCY 

Material 25 

Blackhoard, etc, 5 

Objects required hy the teacher 5 

Objects required hy the pupils 5 

Care and arrangement 5 

Distribution 5 

Sequence and organization 25 

Outline by months and tveeks 5 
Interrelation bettveen subjects 5 
Correlation with the environment 5 
Correlation ivith the pupil 5 

Gradation of tvork 5 

Promptness 25 

1-5 to 5-5 late 20 to 

Starting point, 5, 10, 15 minutes 
after time planned for a previous 
lesson of 15, 30, or 45 minutes 

In the preparation of school work two 
common errors, even when the teacher is in- 
formed, are: (1) lack of preparation; and 
(2) lack of promptness. There are other 
deficiencies but these are usually due to 

44 



THE TEACHING PROCESS 

ignorance of what is expected. A new 
teacher, or one who is inefficient, will have 
no work ready, no plan in evidence, no ma- 
terial at hand, and will wear herself down 
with talk, talk, and then more talk — some of 
it lecturing on subject matter, and some of it 
hectoring on conduct. Her usual complaint 
is that ^she could teach if the class only be- 
haved itself, if the school had better discip- 
line.' Such a teacher should check herself 
up in detail under every one of the headings 
and subheadings given. The total of credits 
she would get would probably be rather 
small. 

Lack of promptness seems chronic and 
needs constant watching. A lesson in arith- 
metic, for instance, planned for 30 or 40 
minutes, may run over into 60, 80 or 100 
minutes. Reading, planned for 20 or 30 min- 
utes, may be kept up for an hour or more. 
Subjects like phonics, music, physical train- 
ing, etc., are often neglected. A teacher who 
knows thoroughly one or more subjects and 

45 



TEACHING EFFICIENCY 

who has an overdeveloped interest in them, 
very likely will be tempted to spend more 
time on them than is allowed. Subjects 
which may receive more time than is planned 
are, arithmetic, composition, reading, and, 
(when taught by an enthusiast), penman- 
ship and drawing. 

§2, Incentives 

Work when properly prepared and pre- 
sented to the children will of itself secure an 
adequate response. Such response, however, 
is of a purely individual character. From 
the social point of view, from the standpoint 
of completeness, any reaction, though satis- 
factory to the individual, requires further 
affirmation from one or more members in the 
social body to which he belongs, and whose 
power and influence he recognizes. It is here 
that the incentive comes into play. Indi- 
vidual response is encouraged and furthered 
on the one hand, or is discouraged and hin- 
dered on the other, according as the social 

46 



THE TEACHING PROCESS 

reaction is favorable or unfavorable, ac- 
cording as the individual is rewarded or 
punished. 

The kind of incentive used is of impor- 
tance. It may be mild, consisting merely of 
a look or verbal rebuke, or it may be severe, 
causing pain or distress of considerable in- 
tensity. To-day there is a general spirit of 
humanity which is regulatmg the infliction 
of pimishment, and which is inclining more 
and more towards probation, parole, and 
allowance of ^another chance.' Similarly, 
on the side of reward, efforts are constantly 
being put forth to give each one his due, by 
means of cooperative systems, and schemes 
for task work with bonus, differential rate 
piece work, and the like. 

To be efficacious, an incentive must be 
prompt, and certain. We all like to play 
with fate, hoping always for the best. But 
we sedulously avoid present distresses, and 
seek present pleasures. And children are 
no different. Often a gold star, or a credit, 

47 



TEACHING EFFICIENCY 

or an expression of commendation given on 
the spot, will have greater weight with the 
child than more momentous occurrences 
which are to take place a month or more in 
the time to come. 

Properly to apply an incentive it is neces- 
sary for the teacher to have a standard of 
excellence, and judgment in determining to 
what extent the pupil's work comes up to 
the standard set. A promiscuous and 
thoughtless use of incentives destroys their 
value. The children then no longer care — 
come what may. 

In comparing one incentive with another, 
it is well for the teacher to consider how 
much effort will be required to apply it, and 
how imiversal will be its appeal to the chil- 
dren. The wider the appeal, and the easier 
the application of any reward or punish- 
ment, the more valuable will it be to the 
teacher in stimulating the pupils. The lack 
of these two qualifications is what make 

4S 



THE TEACmNG PROCESS- 

prizes of so little value. Only a few pupils 
can get a prize. 

Finally, the personal manner of the 
teacher, and the lack of personal animus 
when she rewards or punishes, do much to 
give incentives weight with children. A 
pupil instinctively senses favoritism, weak- 
ness, and lack of balance in a teacher. After 
a teacher has decided that a reward or a 
punishment is necessary she should give it, 
and that should be the end of it. 

The excellences, which inhere in proper 
motivation, are : (1) -fitness and gradation; 
(2) promptness and certainty; (3) judg- 
ment and knowledge of standards; (4) dis- 
tribution and appeal; and (5) a calm, firm, 
undisturbed, and considerate manner in the 
application of an incentive. These five char- 
acteristics should be looked for no matter 
what incentive is used. 

A device which works automatically and 
which is indispensable if good work is to be 
secured is simple checking up, counting, and 

4d 



TEACHING EFFICIENCY 

marking. This alone shows that the teacher 
has at least enough interest in the work or 
conduct of the pupils to see what they are 
doing. It further stimulates such pupils as 
are willing to take advantage of oversight 
or neglect on the teacher's part. The mark 
may vary from a check, count, or stamp, (as, 
star, flag, *good,' ^excellent,' etc.), to correc- 
tion on a percentage basis. Papers should 
be marked the same day and returned to 
the pupils the next. Written work can be 
checked up while the pupils are at it. Note 
books may be looked after by a pupil during 
lunch period. Or the teacher may utilize a 
study period for this purpose. 

In such checking up, neither fear nor 
favor should influence the teacher. Work 
which is poor, slovenly, careless, or incor- 
rect, is worth less than work which is pre- 
cise, clean, neat, and correct. To secure the 
best results distinctions must therefore be 
made. The bully who thinks that an ob- 
streperous attitude will increase his rating 

60 



THE TEACHING PROCESS 

can easily be met by further reduction in 
rating because of his uncalled for opposi- 
tion. With proper explanation of the stand- 
ard used, and uniform application to the 
work of all members of the class, the teacher 
need fear neither the importunate demands 
of pupils, nor investigation and comment by 
parent or principal. 

Oral approval and public exhibition of 
good work and conduct are incentives which 
are easy to give, and of universal appeal. 
Such expressions, as, ^Good,' ^Very good,' 
* Excellent,' 'Show it to the class,' etc., or 
their opposites, never fail of their purpose 
when rightly applied. As in the case of 
marking and checking up, approval and 
exhibition of work require judgment on the 
part of the teacher, a knowledge of stand- 
ards, and their application in a firm, even, 
undisturbed manner. 

Personal interest in the children and su- 
pervision of their activities are evident often 
in the manner of the teacher towards her 

51 



TEACHING EFFICIENCY 

wards. Your little ragamuffin, so-called, 
feels neglect, or a shrug of the shoulders, or 
even slight, unintentional indifference, as 
much as does his better dressed, and appar- 
ently higher-keyed classmate. And he usu- 
ally shows that he feels. A teacher can not, 
therefore, be too careful in her manner to- 
wards her pupils, in her attention to their 
wants, in her readiness to help them over the 
rougher portions of their work. Personal 
interest has much in common with the incen- 
tives discussed in the preceding paragraphs, 
and includes the same excellencies, namely, 
gradation, promptness, judgment, etc. 

Individual aid given to pupils, either in 
group or alone after sessions, is a pointed 
form of incentive which combines justice 
with charity. The weak pupil is not singled 
out and made a mock of before his neighbors. 
He need not shrink from their scorn or con- 
tumely. Such aid or detention should be 
applied promptly and with certainty. There 
need be no feeling in the matter. In a cahn 

52 



THE TEACHING PROCESS 

and equable manner the teacher points out 
what faults exist whether in lessons or con- 
duct, what work is to be done, and devises 
means to assist the pupil in overcoming his 
faults. 

Listing the incentives discussed above, 
and assigning values, we have the following : 

Incentives 100 

Marks and checking up 25 

Approval and exhibition 25 

Supervision and interest 25 

Individual aid and detention 25 

In detail each of these incentives can be con- 
sidered with regard to the characteristics 
given below, with a value of 5 for each merit : 

Fitness and gradation 5 

Prom^ptness and certainty 5 

Judgment and standard 5 

Distribution and appeal 5 

Manner of the teacher 5 

A common error in the use of incentives 
is a failure to follow up the w^ork or the con- 

53 



TEACHING EFFICIENCY 

duct of the pupils. They may continue to do 
poor work, hand in carelessly ruled, dirty, or 
incorrect papers, submit written spelling 
boolis which contain innumerable errors in 
spelling, or even hand in no work at all. 
Unless the work is checked up there results 
a general demoralization in the activity 
neglected. What is true in instruction holds 
with equal force in discipline. Offenses 
which are allowed to continue unchecked 
may develop into disorder and riot. 

A lack of human interest shown by the 
teacher is often found in some classrooms. 
The steady silence, lack of comment, social 
barrenness, and inhuman indifference are 
most oppressive to one filled more or less 
with human kindness. If the teacher would 
only smile, meet the inquiring look of the 
pupils with a kindly glance, a friendly tap, 
or a look of approval, one would feel that the 
pupils might consider school life more worth 
the living. It is not much. But the effects 
are remarkable. Good class spirit and uni- 

54 



THE TEACHING PROCESS 

fied class action roll along apparently with- 
out drag or drive. The pupils then feel that 
the teacher is alive, is human, has interests 
much like their o^vn, and that they them- 
selves are not a species distinct, a kind of 
animal, as it were, to be held in subjection. 

Occasionally the best of teachers, while 
trying to finish up some work or while dis- 
ciplining an unruly pupil, may lose her 
head, and may nag, yell, become sarcastic, 
threaten, or stir things up with inmecessary 
violence. One may sympathize with such a 
teacher. But one must acknowledge that 
little is accomplished in such a case. The 
teacher will simply wear herself down with 
outbursts of uncontrolled f retf ulness or an- 
ger. Loss of self-control is a common com- 
plaint among teachers and would seem to 
indicate at times, ignorance of method, and 
often, heavy pressure due to lack of power 
and to untoward conditions in general. 



55 



TEACHING EFFICIENCY 
§3, Visual Appeal 

Appeal to the eye implies the use of black- 
board, chart, map, perception card, object, 
model, specimen, apparatus, etc., in the 
proper manner. What is shown to the pupils 
must in itself be clear and distinct. Die- 
tinctness refers to the unity of the object as 
a whole, while clearness inheres in the ar- 
rangement of the parts and in their 'general 
simplicity and organization. It is not 
enough that an object be shown. It must be 
such an object as stands out prominently, 
with each of its parts limned in a striking, 
vivid manner. The more important aspects 
may be emphasized in various ways, as by 
difference in color or size, by underscoring, 
by use of signs, print, etc. All this implies 
the use of a proper background as regards 
the material, and a proper seating and 
grouping as regards the pupils. The differ- 
ent excellencies in a lesson will be dimin- 
ished if the pupils are scattered about the 

56 



THE TEACHING PROCESS 

room and outside of the best angle of vision. 
Good seating and grouping may be had by 
massing the pupils the long way in front of 
the object, or by arranging them in a semi- 
circle around it. Good backgrounds are, 
white for black, black for white, and black 
or white for green, red, or orange. Finally, 
sufficient time should be allowed for the 
pupils to observe the model in front of them. 

Arranged in a series, the points of excel- 
lence in the presentation of a model are: 
(1) clearness and distinctness of the ma- 
terial sJiown; (2) proper emphasis of parts; 
(3) correct placing of the model 'before the 
pupils; (4) seating and grouping of the chil- 
dren; and (5) allowance of enough time for 
observation. 

Given the matter to be observed, the pupils 
must further understand what it is all about. 
What connection has the material to the en- 
tire subject? Is the topic presented as a 
separate entity, an isolated unit, or is it 
hooked on to what the pupils know? Are 

57 



TEACHING EFFICIENCY 

there any incidents or experiences in daily 
life to which the model applies ? Can other 
subjects be called in to illustrate and explain 
the object under observation? In short, are 
there present sequence and organization? 

Serially analysed, sequence and organiza- 
tion show the following aspects : (1) rela- 
tion to the subject as a tvhole; (2) interrela- 
tion with other subjects; (3) correlation 
tvith the environment; (4) correlation with 
the pupil; and (5) gradation of the steps in 
which the matter is presented. 

Further consideration of the model will 
result in analysis and sjaithesis; analysis 
into its parts, proper emphasis on the char- 
acteristics and uses of its members, and a 
final synthesis into the original whole with 
which the lesson began. This procedure 
holds whether the model is an example in 
arithmetic, a sentence in grammar, a prob- 
lem in history, a visualization of the map in 
geography, or a study of scientific or other 
apparatus. The model is shown and ex- 

58 



THE TEACHING PROCESS 

plained in general. Then step by step, it is 
taken apart, and characteristics, uses, etc., 
are discussed and explained. Further com- 
parisons may be made between parts, parts 
and whole, etc. Finally the parts are uni- 
fied, and cast into the original whole. 

In a series of excellencies for analysis and 
synthesis we have : (1) presentation of the 
model as a ivhole; (2) presentation of its 
parts; (3) comparison of the parts ivith the 
whole to shoiv structure, use, development, 
processes, etc.; (4) putting of the parts to- 
gather; and (5) alloivance of sufficient time 
to appreciate fully each step. 

All these things can not be done in dumb 
show. The teacher is compelled to talk, an- 
swer questions, point out things, call upon 
pupils, do and say things even while the 
visual presentation is being made. Voice and 
maimer therefore demand a place in the 
series of values to be given to a visual ap- 
peal. It is imperative for the teacher to 
answer questions, to stimulate questioning 

59 



TEACHING EFFICIENCY 

by the pupils, to call their attention to im- 
portant parts of the model, to present cor- 
related problem work, to encourage response 
and individual effort of every kind. Often 
an introduction is needed. Sometimes a 
silent attitude will excite an interest in the 
model. Above all, a patient and cheerful 
manner is required lest the lesson become a 
perfunctory one, and lest response by the 
pupils be checked. 

Voice and manner may be said to include 
the following as far as the visual appeal is 
concerned: (1) patient and cheerful man- 
ner; (2) proper introduction of the model; 
(3) necessary explanation; (4) answering 
questions; and (5) encouraging questions hy 
the pupils and getting them to express them- 
selves. 

In summary we have for the visual ap- 
peal: 



60 



THE TEACHING PROCESS 



Visual appeal 


100 


Blackboard and model 


25 


Voice and manner 


25 


Sequence and organization 


25 


Analysis and synthesis 


25 


In detail each subheading may 


be further 


analysed as follows : 




Blackboard and model 


25 


Clearness and distinctness 


5 


Proper emphasis 


5 


Position of the model 


5 


Grouping of the pupils 


5 


Time allotved 


5 


Voice and manner 


25 


Patience and cheerfulness 


5 


Introduction 


5 


Explanation 


5 


Anstvering questions 


5 


Encouraging pupils to react 


5 


Sequence and organization 


25 


Relation to the subject 


5 


Interrelation with other stibjects 5 


Correlation tvith the environment 5 


Correlation ivith the pupil 


5 


Gradation of tvork 


5 



61 



TEACHING EFFICIENCY 

Analysis and synthesis 25 

Presentation of model 5 

Presentation of its parts ?5 

Comparisons made 5 

Eeeonstrttction of model 5 

Time allowed 5 

The great error in the presentation of 
visual material is a lack of such material 
and an attempt to substitute for it, words — 
words, singly and in avalanche. Instead of 
showing a problem on the board and work- 
ing it out step by step, the teacher may 
talk tell how to do the work, refer to rules 
or definitions, and the like. For visual study 
of the map, the pupil may have to listen to 
more words, or may be compelled to read 
matter which can be given with a few strokes 
of colored crayon, and which should be so 
given. Often material is not at hand be- 
cause it may require a little extra effort to 
get it or to make it. Maps^ charts, percep- 
tion cards, simple apparatus, specimens, etc., 

C2 



THE TEACHING PROCESS 

can readily be obtained and are well worth 
the trouble. 

Good blackboard work is essential and 
lack of it is without excuse. Writing which 
stands out sharply against a clean board, 
proper use of colored chalk, ability to sketch 
simply and rapidly, these can be reasonably 
expected of the class teacher, whether she is 
a beginner or not. No tolerance should be 
sho^m for grey, smeary blackboards, for 
writing by children who can not write dis- 
tinctly, when such writing should be done by 
the teacher, or for the common excuse, ^^I 
never could draw." 

In the general use of the visual appeal a 
host of errors creep into the teacher's work 
chiefly because of a lack of preparation or a 
lack of thought. The pupils may not be 
allowed to react naturally, to see things at 
first their own way, to ask questions appar- 
ently irrevelant, to talk spontaneously and 
naturally. The teacher ma}^ be impatient 
and attempt to hurry the pupils on, to drive 

63 



TEACHING EFFICIENCY 

them as it were into the narrow groove of 
her own advanced and logically arranged 
knowledge. There may be a lack of proper 
correlation with the pupils' life history and 
experience. Parts of the analysis ana syn- 
thesis may be incomplete or entirely lack- 
ing. Increasing knowledge and a rigid 
study of standards will help to remove such 
deficiencies. 

§4, Oral Appeal 

Two forms of oral appeal are (1) question 
and discussion, and (2) the story, informal 
talk, and lecture. Questioning requires prep- 
aration and can not be made up ^as you go 
along.' The language of a good question 
will be clear, terse, and to the point. There 
will be no verbiage, unnecessary remarks, 
nor preliminary sputterings so significant of 
lack of preparation, and of a general ignor- 
ance of what is to be asked next. As regards 
the content of the question, it should point 
in one direction. It seems only fair to the 

64 



THE TEACfflNG PROCESS 

children that it admit of but a single answer. 
As it is assumed that the question has 
been formulated with regard to some logical 
whole, that it has connections with what 
went before and w^hat is to follow, so it is 
expected that one question follow the other 
logically, and lead onward to further dis- 
cussion and oral work on the topic under 
treatment. 

After the question has been formulated 
and presented, it requires time to sink in, to 
allow for response. The teacher may simply 
pause, and call for answers from the pupils. 
Better, she may pause, glance rapidly round 
the room, eye pupils who seem to be inatten- 
tive or indifferent, and call for the response. 
Or still better, she may make such a dra- 
matic use of her hands, countenance, and 
general posture that the class is stimulated 
and anxious to react. 

Arranged in order of merit, the excellen- 
cies of the question as such will be: (1) 
relevance and general fitness to the subject 

65 



TEACHING EFFICIENCY 

in hand; (2) clearness and terseness; (3) 
point and directness; (4) simple pause he- 
fore delivery; and (5) pause with dramatic 
attitude^ as shown iy the teacher's eyes, 
position^ and general posture. 

The story and informal talk follow the 
same degrees of merit as inhere in the asking 
of questions. The story must be apropos. 
It is one thing to tell stories, it is another 
thing to narrate something which has spe- 
cific reference to the onward progress of the 
subject matter of the lesson, or which has a 
particular cultural or ethical value of its 
own. Language which is simple enough for 
the children to understand, which is clear to 
their minds, and which has sufficient variety 
and allusions to render the tale lively and 
attractive, will add greatly to the success of 
any narration by the teacher. Moreover, the 
story as such should move, should have a 
beginning, a middle, and an end. Point and 
directness are required as in the case of the 
question. 



THE TEACHING PROCESS 

Proper pause lends greatly to the interest 
of a story, and in many cases may make or 
mar the tale. Intonation, dramatic gesture, 
smiles or scowls as the case may be, these 
give life to the narrative, and drive home the 
more important aspects of the tale. In fact, 
one can recite the multiplication table to the 
children or read a laundrv ticket in such a 
manner as to hold a class wrapt in attention. 
The story is told of a recitation in French 
delivered to an American audience by Sarah 
Bernhardt, with such vividness and feeling 
as to make many of the audience weep — yet 
she confessed later, that, nonplussed for the 
moment as to what recitation should be 
given, she decided on delivery of the multi- 
plication table. 

As in the case of the visual appeal, voice 
and manner need consideration but from a 
different point of view. Proper use of the 
voice demands considerable training. It may 
express life and action, or may become a 
monotonous drawl significant of sleep and 

67 



TEACHING EFFICIENCY 

inanition. It may range from soft and low, 
to loud and high. It may go, now slow, now 
fast. This often requires a studied control 
on the part of the teacher. Side by side with 
such control should go a fitting attitude. It 
is necessary that the teacher be self-con- 
tained, that she be able to direct her expres- 
sion, facial and otherwise, into the same 
groove as runs the question, or goes the 
story. A smile, a frown, a look of surprise, 
a show of anger — each will express facially 
what the words convey. 

Finally, proper gestures are a consumma- 
tion devoutly to be wished. In the use of the 
hands, training is needed as much as and 
often more than it is required in vocal and 
facial expression. When should the hands 
be quiet, and when should they move vio- 
lently in the air? When should the finger 
be pointed, if not in scorn, at least in indig- 
nation at a reluctant or recalcitrant pupil, 
and when should there be no mxotion of any 
kind? When should the teacher lean for- 

68 



THE TEACHING PROCESS 

V7ard and be confidential, and when should 
she be distant and austere 9 These are ques- 
tions which should be decided properly by a 
class teacher. 

Voice and manner may be resolved into 
the following aspects: (1) use of voice, 
whether soft or loud; (2) use of voice, 
whether lotu or high; (3) use of voice, 
whether sloto or fast; (4) facial expression; 
and (5) posture, gesture, and use of hands. 

The five aspects of sequence and organiza- 
tion which apply to question and story are, 
as already discussed: (1) relation to the 
subject, discussion, or topic as a whole; (2) 
interrelation with other suhjects or topics; 
(3) correlation with the environment; (4) 
correlation with the pupiVs life history and 
experience; and (5) gradation. 

Each question should be one of a series, 
each moment of the story should rise natu- 
rally out of what has gone before. This is 
necessary if the matter is to grip the pupils. 
One is reminded in this connection of the 

G9 



TEACHING EFFICIENCY 

monk who listened, as he thought, but for a 
moment, and found that a thousand years 
had passed away. Wherever matter in other 
subjects may be called in to illustrate and 
vivify what is being presented, it is reason- 
able to expect such interrelation. Both ques- 
tion and story should have a setting in the 
race experience, should come into contact 
with actual life, should, if necessary, touch 
nerve centers in the spiritual life of the child. 
The old adage about the fool and his ques- 
tions refers to a neglect of this rule. A good 
question, an interesting story, a heart-to- 
heart talk, will not be followed by the blank 
stare or the tired vawn which indicate so 
well how the presentation is being received, 
and, in most cases, of what particular worth 
it is to the children. They fail to see the con- 
nection. There is then no appeal to curi- 
osity, to previous knowledge or other basis 
which can be stirred. Finally, a proper 
sequence demands that the questions be 
asked slowly, one point being required at a 

70 



THE TEACHING PROCESS 

time, and that the story move onwards, step 
by step. A class will then not fail to grasp 
the meaning of the present moment because 
of failure of the teacher to lead up to it. 

In all oral work the great danger is that 
the teacher keep on questioning and talking 
like an animated machine, that she fail to 
allow the pupils adequately to respond. If 
a question has been carefully thought out 
and prepared it is worth something. It 
should not be allowed to pass unanswered. 
It should be made to do its duty, to work. 
Adequate response implies that not only is 
the question answered, but that it also is 
answered by a number of pupils correctly, 
by six, eight, ten, or by the whole class, rap- 
idly, one by one, if necessary, as in drill. 
While the answering is going on, the teacher 
simply leans back and listens, and corrects 
or commends when need be. 

Furthermore, to get good value out of a 
question one must see that it is properly dis- 
tributed. Pupils may be called upon at ran- 

71 



TEACHING EFFICIENCY 

dom, now this one, now that one, now one 
who is ready, now one who does not expect 
it, now by pointing at a pupil and again by 
calling him by name or by indicating by a 
friendly nod who is to recite. From time to 
time it is advisable to find out which pupils 
have not been called upon at all during the 
day. A teacher will usually be found to 
possess a personal equation, and, either be- 
cause of her position in the room, or because 
of temperament, will systematically over- 
look a group of pupils. They will be found 
never or seldom to have a chance to recite, 
and may so complain later. 

To rate the teacher on response of pupils, 
one has simply to count the answers and 
give them a value on the basis of the number 
to be expected. The answers given will vary, 
according as there is no answer at all to 
the question, or as there is a continued con- 
nected talk given by several pupils on the 
same topic. Different kinds of errors will 
be found in the answers given by the pupils. 

72 



THE TEACHING PROCESS 

Flippant or careless answers, answers given 
in haste or at random, guesses-, ungram- 
matical expressions, continued yes — ^no re- 
sponses, incomplete answers — all these are 
to be considered as incorrect. If five answers 
can be expected in response to the question 
which has been put, one fifth should be de- 
ducted for each error. If ten answers are a 
reasonable number, each mistake counts a 
tenth off, and so on to the whole class, if the 
lesson is one of drill. 

A similar numerical basis can be used to 
determine what the response is in story tell- 
ing. Use the number of pupils in the room 
as a basis, and count the pupils who yawn, 
squirm, play with objects imder the desk, 
look out of the wmdow, talk, or show in other 
ways that the story has little or no appeal. 
If there are ten such pupils out of a class of 
forty, this will cause the teacher to lose a 
fourth of the credits assigned to response. 

Summarizing the points above presented, 
we have the following : 



TEACHING EFFICIENCY 



Oral appeal 


100 


Question-storv 


25 


Voice and manner 


25 


Sequence and organization 


25 


Distribution and response 


25 


urther details give : 




Question-story 


25 


Relevance and fitness 


5 


Clearness 


5 


Point 


5 


Simple pause 


5 


Dramatic emphasis 


5 


Voice and manner 


25 


Use of voice: soft to loud 


5 


Use of voice: low to high 


5 


Use of voice: slow to fast 


5 


Expression of face 


5 


Use of hands and hody 


5 


Sequence and organization 


25 


Relation to subject or topic 


5 


Interrelation with other subjects 5 


Correlation with environment 


5 


Correlation with pupil 


5 


Gradation 


5 


Distribution and response 


25 


Measure on a numerical basis 





74 



THE TEACHING PROCESS 

Whether a teacher has been trained 
within the system in which she teaches or 
outside of it, whether she comes from a train- 
ing school or from a college, whether she is 
experienced or inexperienced, seems to influ- 
ence her oral work but little as far as errors 
are concerned. The same glaring ineffi- 
ciency, when present, appears to be distri- 
buted about evenly among the different 
types of teachers. According to the accounts 
found in the works of great educators, mis- 
takes in oral presentation probably have 
persisted from before the time of the middle 
ages through the present day. Several of 
the more common types of error can be speci- 
fically defined. 

An error which is frequently met with is a 
lack of pause after the question has been put 
to the class. The teacher seems in a hurry 
to get a load of verbal matter out of her sys- 
tem, and goes ahead quickly whether or not, 
as tested by adequate response of the pupils, 
the children are following. Sometimes one 

75 



TEACHING EFFICIENCY 

question is given right after another, or a 
medley of questions tumbles out, before any 
answer is even possible. Added to this lack 
of pause is often a monologue t^^pe of work, 
in which the teacher not only sets the ques- 
tion, but answers it herself; or, what is 
almost as bad, lets only one pupil answer it, 
and then herself repeats the answer. '^What 
is 6 X 8?" ''Yes, 48.'' ''Who discovered 
America V^ " Yes, Columbus discovered 
America." So the teacher goes on, doing 
almost all of the talking. 

Neglect of the class as a whole is a mistake 
which often leads to disorder. The teacher 
may stare at the pupil and overlook the rest 
of the children. Sometimes a teacher may 
focus her attention so closely on the boy who 
is reciting, that she does not see flagrant dis- 
order within a few feet of her. She does not 
seem to remember that one can watch the 
class and listen to the pupil who is answer- 
ing at the same time. The class is similarly 
disregarded when the pupil is called by name 

76 



THE TEACHING PROCESS 

before the question is given, or when the 
'next boy' is called upon to answer. As soon 
as the class knows who is to recite, that lets 
out every one else, as far as response is con- 
cerned. To 'keep the pupils guessing,' as it 
were, the question must be presented first 
before any one knows who is to be called 
upon. 

Chorus answering is good at times to wake 
up the class and to encourage the more timid 
pupils. But it should not be run into the 
ground. If the chorus answer is allowed, it 
is necessary to insist on sharp, snappy an- 
swering, and to reinforce it by individual 
questioning. The yes-no answer is subject 
to similar limitations. Continued yes-no an- 
swers may be considered as errors. They 
should be used only when it is necessary 
sharply to define a topic, or to shut out aim- 
less and incoherent thinking. More extended 
responses should then be required. 

Errors of omission are occasionally found. 
There may be a lack of sequence in the ques- 

77 



TEACHING EFFICIENCY 

tions which are presented. There may arise 
unnecessary digressions from the topic 
imder discussion. Very often there is no 
topical recitation when the subject calls for 
it, as in the case of composition or history. 
The teacher is so anxious to help the pupil 
that she seems unable to remain silent, to 
let the pupil go on, without prompting by 
her. 

A study of the question, as such, will show 
a variety of errors in the general composi- 
tion. Several are worthy of notice. The 
vague, indefinite question is a pest. It usu- 
ally shows, on the part of the teacher, ignor- 
ance of subject matter, or at times, a sudden 
spurt for the purpose of making a good im- 
pression upon the entrance of a visitor. 
' ^ Tell all you know about Boston, " is a some- 
what indefinite manner of asking for infor- 
mation on the manufactures, or the climate, 
or the location, or the population of Boston. 
A careless use of such expressions, as, 
'^What did he do when, etc.," ^^What hap- 

78 



THE TEACHING PROCESS 

pens when, etc./' ^^What is, etc.,'' also leads 
to senseless questioning. Tlie double bar- 
relled question is confusing because it con- 
tains too much. ^^Why did Washington 
cross the Delaware, and what did he do when 
he got there? Give the results," can be 
broken in^o three or four speciJBc questions. 
If to such a complicated question there are 
added remarks like the following: ^^ Hurry- 
up. We're waiting. Didn't we study that 
last week?" the pupil can hardly gain in 
clear and consistent thinking. 

In story telling a few errors may be 
pointed out. Usually a story is to be told, 
not read out of a book. Nothing is more 
pathetic than the sight of a teacher killing a 
good story — droning it out of a book, and 
indifferent to the response with which the 
story is received. Even when the story is 
such a one as requires telling in the actual 
words of the book, it should be read in part 
with appropriate gesture and dramatic ac- 
tion. In both questioning and story telling 

79 



TEACHING EFFICIENCY 

it is a good practice to write from five to ten 
topics or questions which are to be preseni ed 
in the lesson for the dsij, Nothing tends to 
clarify thought more than expression in 
w^riting, and careful reflection over what has 
been written, both before and after. 

§5. Manual Appeal 

When manual work is given to the pupils 
it should be arranged in a definite manner. 
Specific merits to be noted are the following : 
(1) writing of name and date on paper, lahel 
or tag; (2) margination, ruling, setting, and 
general formal arrangement; (3) spacing, 
grouping, and proportion of the material 
used; (4) neatness and order; and (5) clean- 
liness and freedom from Mots, dirt and filth. 

In arithmetic, arrangement of the written 
work calls for ruling or folding of the paper 
into boxes, with reservation of space for 
name, date, and class at the top of the paper, 
and for number of the examples and their 

80 



THE TEACHING PROCESS 

answers at the sides of the paper. Composi- 
tion, spelling, dictation, and similar written 
work should show margins, name and date, 
and proper spacing. Written work which 
does not completely fill the paper need not be 
jammed close to the top with all the space 
at the bottom. Several lines may be left 
empty, ^skipped,' if necessary, to ensure 
good spacing. Any paper which has on it a 
blot, smear, finger mark or dirt of any kind 
is to be counted out as regards cleanliness. 

Shop work, clay modeling, painting, sew- 
ing, cooking, etc., can each be judged accord- 
ing to the scheme of excellencies enumerated 
above. If the name and date can not be 
l^laced upon the work, a tag or a label can be 
used for this purpose. In addition to the 
name and date, it might be well to have the 
children indicate the amount of material 
used, the time spent, and the cost of the 
whole. Just as written work is set in a mar- 
gined frame, as it were, so shop work, clay, 
sewing, etc., can be set on a background, or 

81 



TEACHING EFFICIENCY 

kept in an envelope, or preserved in a box or 
other receptacle. 

Proportion of parts, grouping, and bar- 
mony are to be looked for in the arrange- 
ment of the material. The size, structure, 
use, and substance of what is being made 
should bear the proper relations, one to the 
other. System and order are necessary if 
the lesson is to proceed expeditiously, es- 
pecially where a large quantity of material 
is to be used. This should be placed within 
easy reach of the pupils. Each pupil should 
know how to set up his desk, arrange his 
tools, and place his material so that he can 
work without confusion. Finally, the work 
should be free from dirt, unnecessary litter, 
and ^muss.' 

In manual work, sequence and organiza- 
tion can be resolved into the same details as 
those given for the other appeals, namely: 
(1) relation to the subject or topic as a 
whole; (2) int err elatiomvith other suhjects ; 
(3) correlation with the environment; (4) 

82 



THE TEACHING PROCESS 

correlation with the pupils' knowledge, ex- 
perience, feelings, and desires; and (5) gra- 
dation in the presentation, step hy step. 

In a great deal of the manual work, se- 
quence and organization constitute an im- 
portant part of the method. In arithmetic, 
a lesson degenerates into mere time-killing 
if the examples are not graded in difficulty, 
and if too many types are presented at once. 
Much of the problem work will appear bar- 
ren to the children if it has little connection 
with real conditions outside of the school. 
The concrete details which go to make up 
most of the number experience of the child 
may not be adequately utilized in the 
classroom. These points must be carefully 
watched if arithmetic is to be properly 
taught. 

Composition, dictation, spelling, and 
grammar require similar care in planning 
for sequence and organization. Grammar 
and spelling have more meaning if taught in 
connection with composition. Composition 

83 



TEACHING EFFICIENCY 

has more life if it is based upon the experi- 
ences of the children, and upon subject mat- 
ter which has been presented in other lessons. 
Dictation becomes an ally to composition 
when used to teach specific aspects, as, para- 
graph structure, use of the simple sentence, 
correction of the ^and' obsession, etc. Com- 
position work in general can bind together 
many units in the curriculum. 

Similar values inhere in a sufficient and 
proper presentation and direction of other 
manual exercises. Whether the work con- 
sists of abstract arithmetic or the more con- 
crete shop work, whether the children are 
struggling with concepts and written work, 
or with cooking, sewing, or modeling, some 
relation to life must be present in the work, 
some connection with the children's experi- 
ence is necessary, if the presentation is to be 
considered successful. Finally, gradation 
step by step is a requisite if the children are 
to work without confusion. 

84 



THE TEACHING PROCESS 

While the children are busy, a rapid 
checking up will show that some of them 
seem unable to do the work correctly. It is 
necessary closely to supervise pupils to pre- 
vent them from repeating mistakes in going 
from one step to the next. Mentally, the 
teacher should group the weaker pupils, and 
halt them when they go wrong. If neces- 
sary, the entire class may have to be stopped 
before completing a step, because most of 
the pupils are doing their work wrong. If 
the work is arithmetic, it may be necessary 
to work the problem over with the class, and 
call for a show of hands, step by step. In 
composition, it may be imperative to spend 
further time on oral work and discussion. 
Further explanation may be needed or 
greater simplification demanded in sewing 
or in cooking. There is no sense in letting 
the children go ahead if they are not work- 
ing correctly. Occasionally a teacher is 
found who will allow the whole class to work 
a series of examples of similar type, or to 



TEACHING EFFICIENCY 

analyse several sentences of the same kind 
even though mistake after mistake is made. 
Repetition of such errors can readily be 
avoided by simple supervision and checking 
up at the start. 

Correctness and incorrectness can be 
measured while the pupils are busy at their 
work. A show of hands or supervision of 
the children while working will indicate the 
number whose work is incorrect. A rating 
can then be given on a numerical basis. 

In manual work voice and manner consti- 
tute a series of excellencies like the series 
given for the visual appeal. These merits 
are enumerated below. 

The different aspects of the manual ap- 
peal are the following : 

Manual appeal 100 

Form and arrangement 25 

Voice and manner 25 

Sequence and organization 25 

Correct and incorrect 25 

86 



THE TEACHING PROCESS 

and in detail : 

Form and arrangement 25 

Name and date 5 

Margins, ruling, setting 5 

Spacing, proportion 5 

Neatness, order 5 

Cleanliness 5 

Voice and manner 25 

Patience and cheerfulness 5 

Introduction 5 

Explanation 5 

Anstvering questions 5 

Encouraging pupils to react 5 

Sequence and organization 25 

Relation to the subject 5 
Interrelation with other subjects 5 

Correlation tvith environmeyit 5 

Correlation tvith pupil 5 

Gradation 5 

Correct and incorrect 25 
Numerical hasis 

On the formal side of manual work the 

leading error is the assumption by the 

87 



TEACHING EFFICIENCY 

teacher that the children ought to know 
where to put the name and date, how to rule, 
and in general, what to do with the material 
given to them. The children may arrange 
their papers half a dozen different ways. 
The teacher may fail to see that in the begin- 
ning it is necessary to show pupils how to 
fold paper, where to place the ruler to rule 
a line, how to arrange material on the desk, 
where to place the body of the written work, 
and so on. Investigations on motion study 
have shown that considerable time is wasted 
because material is not placed within easy 
reach nor arranged in a carefully planned 
manner. 

On the side of content the errors are more 
numerous. Teachers will persist in confus- 
ing pupils with too many type examples in a 
single lesson, or with problems which are too 
difficult because of a lack of gradation in the 
presentation. It seems reasonable to ask 
that only a single new type be presented in a 
development lesson. If the pupils can not 



THE TEACHING PROCESS 

do one, how can it be supposed that they are 
able to do several ? And even in the ease of 
the single type, at some stage there must be 
a difficulty for the children. It is exactly 
this stage which should, by graded work, be 
found out. If the class can do the examples, 
then the lesson is not one on new work, but is 
one of review or of drill. 

Composition is often required when the 
pupils have really nothing to express. A 
number of facts may hurriedly be given to 
them which they are asked to vomit forth in 
paragraph form. If the material is new, 
strange, and weird to the children, they can 
hardly be expected to have much energy or 
inclination for composition, as such. The 
same is true in the case of sewing, of cook- 
ing, of drawing, and the like. The lesson 
should have some connection with the life 
history and development of the child. The 
work should be such as can be done in the 
home or such as has some connection with 
the home. 



89 



TEACHING EFFICIENCY 

A lack of proper grouping and of assist- 
ance results when the correct and the incor- 
rect cases are not checked up by the teacher. 
Each step must be supervised. Pupils who 
are wrong may be aided at their desks or 
sent to the board as a special group, where 
they can be closely watched. Special work 
of simpler nature may be necessary for these 
pupils. 

Any appeal may be abused, but the man- 
ual appeal lends itself more easily than an- 
other to untoward uses. Manual work is a 
good time-killer. It is so easy to ask the 
pupils to *do the next ten examples' in arith- 
metic, or to assign a number of sentences for 
analysis, or to have them copy verbatim ac- 
counts out of a history or geography, or 
write up notes in cooking or science, or 
answer questions at the back of the chapter, 
etc. Much of what the children are required 
to write in the shape of notes can be expe- 
ditiously given to them in the form of dupli- 
cated outlines. An inspection of note books 

90 



THE TEACHING PROCESS 

will show just how accurately any notes 
given to the pupils are copied by them, and 
a watch will indicate exactly how much time 
is wasted in the process. Such errors can be 
checked if the principal will follow a lesson 
in the same subject for a series of days. It 
will be possible then to trace the develop- 
ment of the topic, the use of the different 
appeals, and the kind of drills, reviews, and 
tests that are given. 

§6, Application and Technique 

Whether a teacher wishes to check up her 
own work or whether she is to be checked 
up by a superior, it would be imwise, at first, 
to use the complete scheme as outlined in all 
its detail. Only the mala five standards, 
Preparation, Incentives, Visual Appeal, 
Oral Appeal, and Manual Appeal, should be 
used. Nor need any numerical values be 
employed. Checks or crosses with a few 
helpful remarks are all that are at first 
needed. 



91 



TEACHING EFFICIENCY 

The further divisions may then be ap- 
plied. It is evident that all the characteris- 
tics and excellencies will not apply to every 
lesson, and that all the details under one of 
the main headings may not be required in 
the process of inspection. Again, numerical 
values need not be given in the beginning. 
Four marks (^ X — ?) maybe placed along- 
side the appropriate merit ; according as the 
excellence is present, (^); is not present 
though necessary, (X) ; is not at all appli- 
cable to the lesson, ( — ) ; or is in question 
and needs examination, study, and applica- 
tion, (?). Further familiarity with the 
standards will allow of rating on a numeri- 
cal basis. For the sake of accuracy and con- 
venience a table of values for different regis- 
ters or attendance has been worked out on 
pages 33-35. 

When printed blanks such as are inserted 
in the book are used, an inspection of a les- 
son will take from three to ten minutes. 
After the inspection has been completed, a 

92 



THE TEACHING PROCESS 

carbon copy is either left with the teacher, 
or sent to her later in a sealed envelope. It 
is to be remembered that inspections should 
result in improvement, and that such im- 
provement is not possible if the teacher does 
not know what it is all about, and works in 
the dark. 

To determine whether a topic has been 
presented completely, that is, has been de- 
veloped, reviewed, drilled upon and tested, 
it may be necessary for the principal to fol- 
low up the topic in the one class for a suc- 
cession of days. This is often necessary in 
the case of reading, arithmetic, or composi- 
tion, to name a few subjects in which a single 
lesson may yield an incomplete or false im- 
pression. 

It is to be noted that the teaching process 
applies equally to instruction arid discipline. 
Discipline requires presentation in much the 
same manner as does instruction, and the 
same appeals must be made. The teacher 
must define her field, prepare her material, 

9$ 



TEACHING EFFICIENCY 

talk to the children, have them see illustra- 
tive matter, etc., whether the topic is one in 
ethics and social control, or one in arith- 
metic or drawing. It is a mistaken notion 
with many new teachers that discipline in 
some mysterious fashion drops into the room 
from above, and that the teacher can expect 
to find it present as soon as she enters, all 
ready for her convenience. No doubt the 
pupils carry with them much of the training 
they have already received, but this does not 
preclude further efforts by the teacher to 
lead the pupils along the right paths. 



94 



Ill 

PERSONALITY 
COOPERATION 



V 

PERSONALITY— COOPERATION 

§1, Personality in General 

Any individual who is considered as hav- 
ing a ^wonderful personality/ as being 
^charming,' 'captivating/ or what not, cre- 
ates such an impression by a series of reac- 
tions each of which can be analysed out of 
the total complex and studied. In many 
social maneuvers it is somewhat pathetic to 
see how few and how petty may be the shifts 
and devices employed to create one impres- 
sion or the other. No matter what one's 
original nature may be, one can develop or 
create practically any personality. 

In the measurement of a phase of person- 
ality it is important to appreciate fully what 
basis is used. In social life, personal be- 
havior is adversely judged solely by excep- 
tions. We are all expected to be good and 

97 



TEACHING EFFICIENCY 

honest, and we receive little credit for these 
attributes. But let a single exception occur, 
and rumor, than whom no pest is swifter or 
more active, spreads broadcast our fall from 
virtue. This single exception may be suffi- 
cient to ruin what was before considered a 
noble character, to nullify, it may be, all the 
good work done in a life time. A cashier, 
for example, no matter how talented, no 
matter how long and meritorious his ser- 
vices, falls at once from grace if he commit 
but a single theft. Forthwith, a man of re- 
ligious reputation will lose his good name if 
he is seen at any time under the influence of 
liquor. And in less degree the same thing 
holds true. We can not average character, 
conduct, and personality, as we do results in 
arithmetic. We expect full merit, and con- 
demn upon a single fault. 

Social judgment has been somewhat se- 
vere in this connection and will doubtless 
continue to be so. There is, however, a ten- 
dency towards a more liberal attitude in the 

98 



PERSONALITY— COOPERATION 

treatment of social offenses. Many seem 
willing now that an offender try again, make 
up for past offenses, and report from time 
to time on parole. In measuring the per- 
sonality of the teacher in school it seems 
wise to adopt this newer liberalism. One 
should not be too anxious to condemn. One 
should allow several fresh starts, and should 
wait patiently to see what improvement 
there m.ay result. 

§^. Towards Pupils 

By being helpful and by showing a per- 
sonal interest in their welfare, a teacher can 
begin to create a personality in the class- 
room as soon as the new pupils enter. She 
can show the hesitating newcomer where to 
place his things, how to find his place, etc. 
She can carefully instruct the children 
where to go at dismissal, how to come up 
when the lines enter, and how to reach the 
different parts of the building. During the 



TEACHING EFFICIENCY 

course of the lesson the pupils will feel this 
helpful attitude if they receive material 
promptly, if their questions are quietly an- 
swered, if, in short, the teacher allows no 
untoward circumstance to escape her. Direct 
sunlight in a pupil's eyes or on his paper, 
seat near a hot radiator or in a draught, desk 
too high, etc., are material conditions which 
may cause much distress. Strained gaze, 
sickly or worried look, suspiciously flushed 
face, an open sore, or bandaged face or hand 
may indicate abnormal circumstances which 
merit inquiry and perhaps further investi- 
gation. A number of little acts of attention, 
unremembered though they may be, will 
make the children feel that the teacher has 
an interest in their well being, and will cause 
a warm glow to spread throughout the room. 
Helpfulness and personal interest towards 
pupils may be shown in the following par- 
ticular instances : (1) personal comfort; (2) 
physical well-leing; (3) requests of the chil- 
dren, and their general social needs; (4) 

100 



PERSONALITY— COOPERATION 

mental sliortcomings, weaknesses, and indi' 
vidual differences in instruction; and (5) 
material ivants, supplies, etc. 

Patience and sympathy are often required 
to keep alive a persistent attitude of helpful- 
ness and personal interest. Like silken ties 
they bind heart to heart, and mind to mind. 
In her general attitude and expression the 
teacher will show that she is one with the 
class. The happy contented looks of the 
children are a reflex of this state of har- 
mony. Objectively, such a condition is evi- 
dent by the smile, the low responsive voice, 
the friendly touch, and an even control 
which is not put out by any petty annoy- 
ances. These excellencies do not preclude 
the sharp, stern tone of controlled indigna- 
tion, nor the reasonable outbursts of feeling 
which are necessary at times to meet the 
wayward reactions of a few tumultuous and 
tempestuous children. Without such a check 
on sympathy, in fact, it is often mistaken for 
weakness and may lead to a lack of respect. 

101 



TEACHING EFFICIENCY 

The different merits inherent in patience 
and sympathy are: (1) personal contact 
with the pupils; (2) a soothing voice; (3) an 
encouraging manner; (4) clemency and a 
disinclination to use severe measures for 
trivial offences, or first occurrences; and (5) 
firmness. 

A character which is tempered with sweet 
reasonableness will have a modicum of hu- 
mor and a generous supply of cheerfulness. 
A teacher who has no sense of humor will be 
unable to develop a personality of the high- 
est type. Many of the incidents in school life 
which loom to the greatness of tragedies in 
the brooding consciousness of a moody 
teacher, become absorbed in the solvent of 
humor and disappear in the general atmos- 
phere of cheer. 

Further analysis of cheerfulness and hu- 
mor will yield the following virtues : (1) an 
even temper ^ and general lack of irritability ; 
(2) tact, and an absence of hlundering man- 
agement; (3) reasonableness in demands, 

102 



PERSONALITY— COOPERATION 

and appreciation of the difficulties ivhich 
beset children in their work; (4) toleration 
for their errors and for honest effort^ even if 
not wholly successful; and (5) ability to get 
a proper point of vieiv, and see things in the 
right light. 

Voice, language, dress, and manner, even 
on the purely formal and physical side, help 
greatly to form personality, in many in- 
stances, are all that go to make what is con- 
sidered personality. The teacher should 
dress well. Not only should she be a model 
whom the children can safely follow, but her 
very appearance should be of a kind that 
attracts the pupils towards her. And dress 
does much to make this possible. The 
teacher's manner towards children should 
be such as she shows at home or on the street 
to her relatives or her friends. It is not a 
loss of dignity for her to say, ^ ^Please," 
*^ Thank you," ^^ Excuse me," etc., even to 
the tiniest of mites, or to the scrubbiest of 
pupils. Her language, while at times it need 

103 



TEACHING EFFICIENCY 

not disdain the patois of the street, should 
always be within reach of the dignity 
afforded by distinct enunciation, careful 
pronunciation, slow delivery, and dramatic 
emphasis. For the children under her care, 
nothing is too good in this connection but the 
best. 

Voice and manner may therefore be said 
to include : (1) good 'breeding; (2) courtesy, 
with all that that implies; (3) the use of cor- 
rect English; (4) proper appearance and 
dress; and (5) neatness in person and in gen- 
eral belongings, as, desk, room, etc. 

Summarizing the important excellencies 
which go to make up personality in its rela- 
tion to the pupils, we have : 

Personality towards pupils 100 

Helpfulness and personal interest 25 
Patience and sympathy 25 

Cheerfulness and humor 25 

Voice and manner 25 

104 



PERSONALITY— COOPERATION 

Details are as follows ; 

Helpfulness and personal interest 25 

Personal comfort of children 5 

Physical tvell-heing of children 5 

General requests and needs 5 
Mental shortcomings, individual 

differences 5 

Material wants, supplies, etc, 5 

Patience and sympathy 25 

Personal contact 5 

Soothing voice 5 

Encouraging manner 5 

Clemency 5 

Firmness 5 

Cheerfulness and humor 25 

Even temper 5 

Tact 5 

Reasonableness 5 

Toleration 5 

Point of view 5 

105 



TEACHING EFFICIENCY 

Voice and manner 25 

Good h reeding 5 

Courtesy 5 

Use of good English 5 

Dress and appearance 5 

Neatness and tidiness 5 

Since error is the chief measure of lack of 
personality, both error and measurement 
can be treated together. Striking instances 
in which the teacher fails to be helpful to 
pupils are the following: (1) indifference 
to reasonable requests for help or for infor- 
mation; (2) neglect of the personal comfort 
of the pupils, as, when the sun shines on 
their papers or in their eyes, when they are 
cramped in seats too small or compelled to 
write on desks too high, or when they are 
required to sit with 'hands behind backs,' or 
with hands folded upon their heads ; and (3) 
disregard for the physical welfare of the 
children as shown by a manifest insensibility 
to open sores, flushed faces, strained look or 
attitude which may be due to defect in sight 

106 



PERSONALITY— COOPERATION 

or hearing, and by an indifference to such 
untoward conditions as wet clothing, aisle 
blocked with window pole or other object 
nicely placed to trip up passersby, etc. 

Many objective signs thrust themselves 
upon one's notice when there is a lack of 
patience and sympathy between the teacher 
and the children. There may be open sneers, 
sarcasm, and public abuse. The teacher may 
coolly point to a child and remark loudly to a 
visitor, ^^Yes, he is my stupid boy,'' or she 
may indicate a line of pupils with the com- 
ment, *^This is my defective row." When a 
teacher constantly refuses to come near to a 
pupil, or to allow him to approach close by 
her, when she seems unable to smile, or to 
respond to the advances of children, or to 
encourage such advances, it is safe to assume 
that she h^s made little effort to develop 
sympathy between herself and the children. 
The other extreme will be found where a 
teacher seems afraid to assert herself, to call 
sharply to order a palpable delinquent, or to 

107 



TEACfflNG EFFICIENCY 

admonish, firmly and forcibly, any child 
who will not respond to gentler suasion. 

When cheerfulness and humor are marked 
by their absence, the result quickly shows in 
the teacher's voice and manner. A queru- 
lous note is detected in her manner, and a 
peevish, fretful attitude becomes manifest. 
The children are continually harried by 
directions, and a rain of ^Don'ts' descends 
upon their heads. There is present a ten- 
dency to nag and to overvalue slight breaches 
of discipline. The teacher does not mean to 
be unjust, she does not intend to be hasty 
she may really consider that the occasion 
calls for her outbursts of censure, and for 
her continual complaints and importunities. 
But she errs in not seeing incidents in the 
right perspective, in not having a proper 
point of view, in lacking a sense of humor. 

A lack of courtesy towards pupils, a disre- 
spect in the manner of treating them, a gen- 
eral disregard for such amenities as are re- 
quired in social life, etc., may be considered 

108 



PERSONALITY— COOPERATION 

as errors iii voice and manner and checked 
up against this aspect of personality. Incor- 
rect pronunciation, slovenly English, or a 
continual use of slang in an effort to be 
familiar, are bad. Dirty linen, clothing 
marked by grease or other spots, unshined 
shoes, careless coiffure, etc., may seem out- 
side of the pale of criticism in the academic 
atmosphere of the classroom, but they de- 
mand just as close inspection as is accorded 
them in business life outside. Occasionally 
among teachers (men as well as women) a 
chewer of gum is found. In such matters 
one must have in mind reasonable standards 
as well as the feelings of the teacher. A 
teacher who is so careless or so ignorant as 
to offend in the particulars mentioned should 
have her attention called to them. 

On the occurrence of the first offence, a 
question mark placed under the proper 
heading, with a definite statement of the 
error committed, will be sufficient to cause 
reflection and efforts at correction. The 



109 



TEACHING EFFICIENCY 

statements should simply give the fact with- 
out further comment, as, ^^Five pupils writ- 
ing on desk with sun on paper, ' ' or, ^ ' Smith 's 
face flushed. Sickness?" or, ^^Sigs for six, 
goner for going to, keepin for keeping, etc.," 
or, ''Why call the boy defective, in front of 
the class?" It is necessary then to follow 
up the suggestions which are thus given to 
the teacher, to see whether there is any im- 
provement. Repetition of the offense after 
one or two more warnings should be rated a 
flat out of the total allowed. 

§3. Towards Visitors 

A parent who calls at the school is usually 
a parent who is in trouble, or looking for it. 
In either case such a parent needs help. He 
may be nonplussed by the meaning of a re- 
port card. He may complain because his 
child has no home work. He may be flUed 
with wrath over some imagined abuse by 
either teacher or pupils. He may wave a 
doctor's certificate in his hand and threaten 



110 



PERSONALITY— COOPERATION 

to sue the school because of punishment 
which his child has received. A teacher who 
has developed a personality towards the chil- 
dren has in part secured the good will of the 
parents. In exceptional cases, however, such 
good will may be put to a strain, with the 
resulting visit. In such an instance it is 
advisable to show the parent every courtesy, 
listen to him, and let him have his say with- 
out interruption. Tell him what he wants 
to know. Answer his questions quietly, even 
if they are not presented with deference, nor 
couched in friendly terms. Never start to 
disagree, argue, or interrupt him with a 
^ ' But, etc. ' ' After he is all through, explain 
what is necessary, give facts, and finally, 
*put it up to him' squarely with a ^^ What do 
you want us to do ?'' 

Official visitors may grace the classroom 
from time to time with requests of their own. 
The teacher need not show feeling over such 
visits. Information should be cheerfully 
given, data furnished, blanks filled out, etc., 

Ill 



TEACHING EFFICIENCY 

as the occasion demands. It is foolish for a 
teacher to deny any reasonable requests or 
to dispute over matter about which she 
knows little. A teacher very quickly gets a 
good name in the school as a worker and one 
who is to be relied upon, or, contrariwise, as 
a nuisance and general disturber of the 
peace. And it is by her manner of response 
and her helpfulness upon innumerable small 
occasions that her personality in this direc- 
tion is developed. 

Helpfulness towards visitors implies the 
following virtues: (1) a response to re- 
quests, etc; (2) reasonable promptness in 
satisfying demands; (3) a fair degree of 
completeness in what is done, and a certain 
adequacy in the satisfaction afforded; (4) 
care and accuracy in the performance, and 
correctness and attention to detail in the 
result; and (5) a manner which is agreeahle 
and pleasing. 

Ability to listen quietly, note the essential 
points to be remembered or carried out, 

112 



PERSONALITY— COOPERATION 

and readiness to execute requests promptly, 
make for solidarity between the teacher and 
her superiors. One of the first things a 
teacher ought to learn is how to listen care- 
fully, how to carry out instructions, and 
when, if need be, to take a hint. Any visitor 
who takes the trouble to come to a teacher's 
room, call her from her work, and make a 
request of her, does so with a purpose, and 
should be so respected. Whether the visitor 
is a heated, angry parent, or a superior offi- 
cial, it will not pay the teacher in the long 
run to show indifference, ignore requests, or 
interrupt, even if the language with which 
she is addressed carries with it a note of 
abuse or threat. It is far better to listen, 
say nothing, correct the error mentioned, 
note in writing what is asked for, smilingly 
agree, and, in general, try to straighten mat- 
ters out in a calm and unruffled manner. 

Ability to listen contains the following 
merits : (1) quiet attention to luhat is said; 
(2) an understanding of what is required; 

113 



TEACfflNG EFFICIENCY 

(3) selection of the essentials, noting of im- 
portant points, etc,; (4) folloiving out of 
suggestions, and general good will; and (5) 
serenity and self-control. 

Courtesy is necessary at all times and 
with every one — inferior, equal, and supe- 
rior. It implies knowledge of the conven- 
tional forms of behavior and a general ab- 
sence of roughness, censoriousness, raillery, 
contradiction, captiousness, excess of cere- 
mony, interruption, and dispute, as Locke 
in his Thoughts Concerning Education 
points out. There is also implied the pres- 
ence of dignity, self-control, consideration 
for others, and the exhibition of self-respect 
in the matter of general appearance, use of 
English, etc. 

The series of excellencies to be looked for 
in courtesy are: (1) proper conventional 
hehavior; (2) respect for the opinions, feel- 
ings, heliefs, etc, of others; (3) a general 
attitude of docility, willingness to learn, and 
ahility to see both sides of a question; (4) 

114 



PERSONALITY— COOPERATION 

dignity; and (5) a use of English tuhich 
befits the time, the person, and the occasion, 
with due regard for such conventions and 
formalities as exist. 

Finally, as the teacher expects others to be 
patient with her, so she herself should show 
a modicum of this virtue. The essence of 
patience lies in waiting — in saying nothing 
and in doing nothing, in letting the clouds 
roll away of themselves, and in allowing any 
untoward incident to be seen in its right 
perspective and in the proper atmosphere. 
It seems fair to assume that others have a 
sense of decency, that others are trying to 
do what is right, that all the merits and all 
the virtues do not inhere solely in ourselves. 
In addition to quiet waiting, patience im- 
plies an ability carefully to analyze not only 
another 's actions, but more particularly our 

OT\TL. 

Patience implies that : (1) ti^ne is given 
for thought, reflection, and understanding 
of the matter in question; (2) some effort is 

115 



TEACHING EFFICIENCY 

put forth, and some application and endur- 
ance shown; (3) oral expression is not hasty 
or ill-considered; (4) other expression which 
may result is fitting and proper; and (5) 
composure is manifest through it all. 

Briefly, the excellencies contained in a fit- 
ting personality towards others are ; 



Personality towards visitors 


100 


Helpfulness 


25 


Ability to listen 


25 


Courtesy 


25 


Patience 


25 


and in detail : 




Helpfulness 


25 


Response to requests, etc. 


5 


Promptness 


5 


Adequacy and completeness 


5 


Care and accu7^acy 


5 


Personal manner 


5 



116 



PERSONALITY—COOPERATION 



Ability to listen 


25 


Quiet attention 
Understanding 
Selection of essentials 
Following of suggestions 
Serenity 


6 
5 
5 
5 
5 


Courtesy 
Conventional behavior 


25 

5 


Respect 
Docility 
Dignity 
Language 


5 
5 
5 
5 


Patience 


25 


Time allowed 


5 


Effort and endurance 


5 


Oral expression 
Other expression 
Composure 


S 
5 
5 



A teacher violates the spirit of helpful- 
ness v/hen she meets complaint or request 
with abuse or counter complaint. She com- 
mits an error when she ignores any matter 
which requires correction and to which her 

117 



TEACHING EFFICIENCY 

attention has been called, either orally or in 
writing. She makes a grievous mistake in 
refusing to grant reasonable requests made 
from time to time, or in delaying to answer 
or respond when called upon. She does 
wrong in sticking so closely to the letter of 
the law that she emphasizes its violation 
rather than its observance. The individual 
who is looking for trouble, as the old adage 
advises, usually finds it. 

Young teachers, and occasionally older 
ones who consider themselves above criti- 
cism and beyond stricture, may show an 
irritating inability to listen. ^You can't tell 
them anj^thing.' Sometimes, like the Pre- 
torian guards of old, they assume special 
rights and privileges; and sometimes, they 
imagine that perhaps wisdom will die with 
them. As the poet, Butler, writes. 

They keep their consciences in cases, 
As fiddlers do their crowds and bases, 
Ne'er to be used but when they're bent 
To play a fit for argument. 

118 



PERSONALITY— COOPERATION 

Their usual weapons are argument, recrimi- 
nation, and abuse. A teacher who shows so 
little training and self-control, when ap- 
proached with a reasonable request and in a 
respectful manner, as to become vitupera- 
tive or disrespectful, deserves no further 
consideration than a flat out of 25, and if 
other merits are involved, possibly out of 
the entire 100. It is useless to prolong any 
discussion, once it reaches the stage of argu- 
ment and recrimination. Since it takes two 
to make a quarrel, either side can cut short 
the matter by listening and saying nothing. 

Lack of courtesy in more insidious form 
is shown by slouching posture, sneering atti- 
tude, lack of attention, etc., and should, after 
several warnings have been noted, receive 
out of 25. Loose English, slovenly or dirty 
dress, etc., are worth about the same con- 
sideration. 

Patience or its lack may be measured by 
(1) the length of time between action and 
reaction, and (2) by the effort shown on the 

119 



TEACHING EFFICIENCY 

part of the teacher to understand and inter- 
pret what has been presented for her con- 
sideration. A teacher may be rated as defi- 
cient in patience if she continually indulges 
in outbursts of various kinds, fails to try 
out suggestions before passing public com- 
ment upon them, and neglects to consult with 
other teachers on the meaning of circulars 
or directions, or on the significance of direc- 
tions about which there is some doubt. 

§4. Towards the School 

A teacher who considers her work to be 
bounded by the four walls of her classroom 
limits her personality just to that extent. 
As far as the school as a whole is concerned, 
such a teacher is of little worth. Many in- 
stances occur from time to time which call 
for prompt action on the part of any one 
within effective reach. Noise or disorder of 
any kind in the hall, on the stairs, or in the 
yard should receive prompt attention. 
Untoward incidents may develop into more 

120 



PERSONALITY— COOPERATION 

serious complications later, and should 
promptly be reported or corrected. It is 
implied in all this, however, that there be 
no interference with any one who is already 
in charge. 

In school routine the same spirit of help- 
fulness can facilitate smooth, well-oiled 
progress. The slight requests made from 
time to time by teachers or superior officials 
should receive prompt and courteous re- 
sponse. In making requests of other teach- 
ers for books, supplies, etc., which are in 
common use among several classes, it seems 
reasonable to ask that these be secured be- 
fore or after sessions. Interruptions in 
class work tend constantly to break up the 
continuity of the lesson, and the children 
who enter from time to time for one or the 
other thing, tend to become a nuisance. To 
prevent possible imposition by pupils, and 
to ensure an accurate delivery of any mes- 
sage or request, it is well to put it in writing, 
and have the pupil do nothing more than 

121 



TEACHING EFFICIENCY 

deliver it. Closely allied with these matters 
is the usual permission given to pupils to 
leave the room, go to some other class to see 
the teacher or borrow from another pupil, 
and go to the yard for a drink of water, or 
what not. It seems a safe rule to follow 
never to allow a pupil to leave the room, and 
thereby the sight of the teacher, unless he is 
ill, or compelled to leave because of the de- 
mands of nature. If inkwells are to be 
cleaned, or notes to be sent, they can be 
attended to after the session is over. 

In school matters, helpfulness can be 
shown in the following fields ; (1) records, 
reports, and general requests for aid or in- 
formation; (2) school instruction; (3) school 
discijjline; (4) school administration; and 
(5) a general forbearance and manifest ten- 
dency to tread softly in douhtful matters 
rather than to rush ahead. 

Cooperation to the fullest extent implies 
not only the acquiescence a1)ove outlined but 
also an active participation in the work of 

122 



PERSONALITY— COOPERATION 

the school, inside and outside of the class- 
room. A lack of initiative will make the 
teacher seem much like Tennyson's Lotos- 
eater to whom, 

The gushing of the wave 
Far, far away did seem to mourn and rave 
On alien shores ; and if his fellow spake, 
His voice was thin, as voices from the grave ; 
And deep-asleep he seem'd yet all awake, 
And music in his ears his beating heart did make. 

A school is a small community in which each 
one is to take an active part. A teacher who 
is always waiting to be asked to try out some 
new device or method, and who has little of 
her own to offer, will find that she is grad- 
ually drifting into the limbo of the non-pro- 
gressive and the inconsequential. In the 
matter of classroom exercises and school 
activities the same holds true. Assistance 
of any sort can be volunteered quietly and 
without ostentation. There is inherent in 
the right kind of initiative a imif orm cour- 
tesy and consideration, and an entire free- 

123 



TEACHING EFFICIENCY 

dom from aggressive or insolent insistence. 
Noise and fuss are not to be considered as 
signs of initiative. 

Analysis of initiative will show the fol- 
lowing aspects : (1) promptness, readiness, 
and a general preparedness to meet a situa- 
tion; (2) quiet methods and easy control; 
(3) judgment and skill in knotving when, 
tvhere, and how to act, and in selecting 
means, details, etc.; (4) the assumption of 
full control and responsibility in the matter; 
and (5) securing of the necessary result, im- 
provement, or correction. 

Unless the teacher is on hand each day 
punctually, the work of the school will suffer. 
Moreover, it seems like a travesty on discip- 
line to have a late teacher instruct the chil- 
dren on the advantages of coming early. No 
teacher can so adjust herself as to come in 
at the last minute each day. The law of 
variation forbids. Continued entries in the 
time book which state that the teacher has 
entered on the stroke of the late bell may be 

x24 



PERSONALITY— COOPERATION 

considered, on their face, to be false. One 
who aims at this last minute will hit it on 
most of the occasions, but sometimes one 
will come shortly before the bell, and a few 
times will be decidedly late. Suspicious en- 
tries of this sort require watching, of both 
clock and teacher. 

A summary of excellencies in personality 
towards the school will yield the following : 



Personality towards the school 


100 


Helpfulness 


25 


Initiative 


25 


Courtesy 


25 


Punctuality 


25 


detailed analysis will give : 




Helpfulness 


25 


Reports, requests, etc. 


5 


School instruction 


5 


School discipline 


5 


School administration 


5 


Foriecrance 


5 



125 



TEACHING EFFICIENCY 

Initiative 25 

Readiness and preparedness 5 

Quiet, easy control 5 

Judgment and skill 5 

Responsibility 5 

Result attained 5 

Courtesy 25 

Conventional heJiavior 5 

Respect 5 

Docility 5 

Dignity 5 

Language 5 

Punctuality 25 

Numerical measure 

A deficiency in any of the above virtues 
should be rated 0. Cautions are advisable 
for a few times before a final judgment is 
passed. First offences may be noted on the 
blanks with a question mark (?) or a cross 
(X). Continued violation then seems with- 
out much excuse and deserves no further 
leniency on the part of the principal or head 
teacher. 

126 



PERSONALITY— COOPERATION 

Flagrant o:ffences against helpfulness by 
teachers in the school are : (1) general in- 
difference to what is going on outside of the 
classroom whether or not any untoward 
incidents may be checked by the teacher's 
presence, and practically invite attention 
because of their proximity; (2) failure to 
report occurrences which may either benefit 
or hurt the reputation of the school; (3) 
interference with the work of colleagues, as 
by delay in filling out departmental blanks, 
by lack of support and cooperation with 
other teachers in matters of discipline, or 
by direct interference and quarreling with 
coworkers; (4) carelessness and lack of 
thought in sending boys to other rooms with 
notes, to the yard to clean inkwells, or 
around the building on various unnecessary 
and spasmodic requests, all these violations 
occurring while the school is in session and 
the children are busy at work; and (5) gen- 
eral interference of any kind with the work 
of the school. 



127 



TEACHING EFFICIENCY 

Initiative of high type may be shown by 
the teacher who quietly manages her class, 
takes any pupils sent to her, and runs things 
smoothly, successfully, and without com- 
plaint. Should, however, an occasion arise, 
it is to be reasonably expected that the 
teacher, who is nearest at hand or most 
directly concerned, will respond properly. 
The teacher need not hesitate even if it 
seems necessary to point out possible im- 
provement in the management of the school, 
provided this be done with tact and cour- 
tesy. Active interference with the work of 
others, however, merits scant consideration, 
and is well worth a zero out of the totality 
of merits. 

Lateness of teachers can be rated on a 
numerical basis, the denominator being 4, 5, 
or 10 according to the exigencies of school 
control. Degrees of early entrance can be 
similarly arranged and a scheme of values 
set according as the teacher comes after a 
set time. If, for example, early entrance 

128 



PERSONALITY— COOPERATION 

varies between 8 o'clock and 8;40 A. M., 2 
entrances after 8 :30 may merit a deduction 
of 1 point from the total of 25 for punctu- 
ality. It is a sad commentary on human 
nature as it exists in some teachers to record 
the fact that, if the question of lateness is 
not looked after, not only may lateness run 
riot, but false entries may be made without 
scruple. 

§5, School Activities 

School music, singing, and exercises at 
general assembly are necessary in a school, 
and are usually taken in charge by two or 
three teachers, one who plays the piano, one 
who directs the singing and organizes spe- 
cial programs, and one who arranges for 
color-guard drill, marching of the pupils, 
and their general entry into the exit from 
the assembly hall. In addition there may be 
a debating club, a dramatic society, or a 
school band, each of which requires volun- 
teer service, where no provision for bonus or 
special reward is made in the budget. 

129 



TEACHING EFFICIENCY 

A monitor corps or school patrol is a de- 
sideratum. Pupils for such service require 
careful selection, drilling, instruction, and 
occasional meetings. Duplicated directions 
may be necessary to ensure effective service 
from the pupils. Side by side with such a 
corps may be organized an athletic associa- 
tion in which the pupils are grouped accord- 
ing to class, age and weight. Interclass and 
other meets may be held from time to time. 
Other forms of pupil cooperation under 
supervision by teachers are, a civic league, 
a sanitary squad, a corps to look after 
absentee pupils, a group to provide and pre- 
pare specimens, apparatus, etc., one to mend 
and cover school books, etc. 

It is not enough simply to organize a 
committee or corps of pupils. Written or 
printed instructions, a constitution, or a 
charter tend to give the group a corporate 
dignity. Badges, banners, or sashes give to 
each member of the club an added impor- 
tance. Meetings are necessary from time to 

130 



PERSONALITY— COOPERATION 

time, to hold the pupils of the group to- 
gether, and to keep alive their enthusiasm. 
Special exercises, games, reception, class 
day, etc., with entertainment and refresh- 
ment are usually red-letter events for the 
children. When any corps has done good 
work its members deserve some special treat. 

In organization of any activity, the fol- 
lowing excellencies should be looked for: 
(1) appropriateness and need of what is in 
the process of formation; (2) written plan, 
schedule, instructions, constitution, etc.; (3) 
fit insignia, tanners, flags, etc.; (4) pupil 
aid, officers, leaders, etc.; and (5) duties out- 
lined and made specific. And in a meeting 
the following merits can be expected : (1) 
need, numher, etc.; (2) instruction^ ad- 
dresses, etc.; (3) discipline and general man- 
agement; (4) exercises; and (5) refresh- 
ments, exhibition of work, presence of visi- 
tors, etc. 

Properly to check up a school activity, one 
must consider the following merits : 

131 



TEACHING EFFICIENCY 

School activities 100 

Organization 25 

Meetings 25 

Number active 25 

Contribution 25 

And in detail : 

Organization 25 

Appropriateness and need 5 

Written plan, instructions, etc, 5 

Insignia, banners, etc, 5 

Pupil aid, officers, etc. 5 

Duties outlined 5 

Meetings 25 

Need and number 5 

Instruction, addresses, etc. 5 

Discipline, management, etc. 5 

Exercises 5 

Refreshments, exhibition, etc. 5 

Number active 25 
Numerical basis 

Contribution 25 
Numerical basis 



132 



PERSONALITY— COOPERATION 

Since school activities call for volunteei 
service, it is impossible to insist in a partici- 
pation by all the teachers. Some are neither 
fitted for such service nor able to give it. 
Teachers who do not engage in any school 
activities deserve no credits out of the total 
of 100 assigned to this aspect of personality. 
Teachers who are willing to expend extra 
energy in this work deserve not only the 
credits assigned, but further reward in the 
matter of official ratings, assignment to 
rooms or classes, distribution of books and 
material, etc. As they are doing much to help 
the general spirit of the school, every effort 
should be made to make them feel that their 
services are fully appreciated. 

§6. Records and Reports 

As soon as an official record or report is 
asked for it should be attended to, if not 
immediately, at least within the same day, 
or within the time limit set. Since many of 
these records are required by state or city 

133 



TEACfflNG EFFICIENCY 

law, neglect of them becomes an offense of 
serious moment. To lay a blank aside is 
usually to delay it or forget about it alto- 
gether. Receipts, figures, signatures, etc., 
can be given at once. In the filling out of 
forms, spaces in books, etc., neatness, care, 
and accuracy can be required. Careful writ- 
ing, legible figures, and ruled lines are a sme 
qua non. 

Care can be shown in the following par- 
ticulars: (1) ruling; (2) penmanship; (3) 
figures, columns, etc.; (4) general English; 
and (5) cleanliness. 

Rating of teachers in the matter of 
records and reports is possible under the 
following headings : 



Records and reports 


100 


Care 


25 


Promptness 


25 


Completeness 


25 


Accuracy 


25 



134 



PERSONALITY— COOPERATION 
And in detail : 



Care 


25 


Ruling 

Writing 

Figures 

English 

Cleanliness 


5 
6 
5 
6 
5 


Promptness 
Numerical measure 


25 


Completeness 
Numerical measure 


25 


Accuracy 
Numerical measure 


25 



The records which require periodical in- 
spection are, roll books, attendance sheets, 
pupils' report cards, and supply books. It 
may be well to point out what errors to avoid 
when these are written up, and what mis- 
takes to check up when they are being in- 
spected. Roll books and pupils' report cards 
may not be written up on time. Sometimes 

135 



TEACHING EFFICIENCY 

entries are not made, as of new admissions, 
discharges, changes in register, and daily 
latenesses of pupils. Occasionally com- 
I>laints that a pupil has not received his 
monthly report card are justified. The 
printed or duplicated supply blank is better 
than the supply book. If, however, the 
teacher uses a supply book to note what sup- 
plies she needs each month, this should be 
neatly ruled, with columns for the kind of 
supply, the amomit asked for, the amount 
received, and the date. The hurried, care- 
less writing in pencil deserves nothing out 
of 25 in *care.' No records or reports should 
ever leave the teacher's hands unless there 
is recorded on the outside of the paper, book, 
envelope, or what not, the name of the 
teacher, the number of the room, and the 
class taught, with possibly the date or the 
term. 

§7. The Negative Instance 

One violation of any excellence in person- 
ality or cooperation is sufficient to destroy a 

136 



PERSONALITY— COOPERATION 

host of other merits in the same field, as far 
as the teacher's practical value to the school 
is concerned. A good record for punctuality 
extending over a number of years can be 
spoiled if a teacher comes late once only, and 
signs early, that is, makes a false entry. Re- 
fusal to sign a receipt or to fill out a blank 
m.ay seem to the teacher an incidental mat- 
ter and of small account ; but such a single 
violation is enough to mar her record for 
the whole school term. These are but single 
instances. One who is experienced in school 
work can recall many more like them. 

A satisfactory record is a good thing. So 
are proper food, good air, and sufficient 
sleep. But the fact these have existed for a 
period of years is no necessary guarantee 
that they will continue automatically to per- 
sist. The good dinners we had last year will 
do us no especial good if we are hungry at 
present. So no teacher should presume on 
her past record, nor assume liberties, nor 
allow deficiency and weakness to creep into 

137 



TEACHING EFFICIENCY 

her work. Contrariwise, no teacher who has 
not succeeded in the one term need be so 
discouraged as to give up all hope. Each 
term should be considered, in its way, a law 
unto itself. 

It behooves a teacher, therefore, carefully 
to consider any negative action she may take. 
It is always wxU to acquiesce for the time, 
think matters over, and, if need be, talk 
things over with others. In logic, it is an 
elementary rule that negatives can not be 
used to prove anything. So, in social life, 
adverse criticism helps but little, and de- 
structive action hinders progress. One need 
be marked with onlv the name of ^ crank' or 
'seeker after trouble,' and one will be con- 
sidered as a nuisance, as a social block, and 
will be treated as such. Wliat are wanted 
in this world of give and take are cheerful, 
helpful workers. 



3.38 



IV 

RESULTS OF INSTRUCTION 



VI 

EXPRESSION 

§1, Oral Expression 

To speak or to read properly one must 
give due regard to (1) pause, (2) pronun- 
ciation, (3) accent, (4) stress, and (5) pos- 
ture. Pronunciation as here used includes 
enunciation and articulation. Stress refers 
to proper inflection, tone, and rhythm. 
Proper posture implies that when he is 
standing, the pupil is erect, with head up, 
with his book about 12 inches from his eyes, 
and at right angle to the line of vision ; that 
when he is sitting, he does not lean forward, 
does not lay the book flat on the desk, but 
holds it properly, either leaning it against 
the desk ledge, or placing it against the up- 
turned desk, as the case may be. 

Giving oral expression a value of 100, we 
may give as its specific merits the following : 

141 



TEACHING EFFICIENCY 



Oral expression 


100 


Pause 


20 


Pronunciation 


20 


Accent 


20 


Stress 


20 


Posture 


20 



Errors in oral expression require constant 
checking up and correction. Most pupils, 
and in fact, most adults, read and talk too 
fast. They do not noticeably stop at the end 
of the sentence. They rush ahead whether 
or not the hearer is able to follow. Nice 
distinctions in dramatic pause are com- 
monly neglected. 

Pronunciation is violated in the following 
specific instances : 

(1) tli^ mispronounced as d^ or t^ espe- 
cially after prepositions, as, to^ in, on, from, 
etc. ; and in such words, as, father, mother, 
brother, nothing, together, thing, three, 
third, etc. 

(2) ing, mispronounced variously as en, 
ink, ine. 

142 



EXPRESSION 

(3) ir, ur^ mispronounced as oi, in girl, 
first, third, church, etc. 

(4) Baby talk, as, 

d for g in give, good, etc. 
t for c in cat, can, etc. 
/ for th in thing, think, etc. 
5 for sh in shrimp, shroud, etc. 

(5) Dropping of the final i^ or d as in the 
expressions : 

Lemme go, Leggo. 

Watcher say? I dunno, 
Shoudjer go? Goo iye. 
I don wanna, Dontcher know? 

(6) Addition of final letter, as in satv(r), 
law(r), etc. 

(7) Omission of middle letter, as in gov- 
ernment, library, picture, Saturday, etc. 

(8) Insertion of middle letter, as in par- 
liament, umbrella, gymnasium, athletic, etc. 

(9) Mispronunciation of vowel sounds, 
as in his, music, netv, ttvelve, and the like. 

(10) Softening of sounds, as in cease, 
baseball, acid, six, longer, etc. 

143 



TEACHING EFFICIENCY 

It might be well to collect and list the errors 
in pronunciation which are peculiar to the 
neighborhood and to the school. 

There is often ignorance of the simple 
rule in phrasing, namely, that a phrase is 
read as a single moment up to the first quali- 
fying word. Thus, in the park, is to be read 
with a single stress, and with a single sweep ; 
but in the hig, white, 'building calls for a 
pause after hig and white, with added stress 
for each of these words. Most children fail 
to pause after qualifying words and to give 
proper stress to phrase groups. 

In the testing of a class, five of the best 
readers may be called upon each to read a 
sentence or two from a lesson which they 
have already had. Each one can rapidly be 
checked up on the five merits enumerated 
above. Should these pupils fail in one or 
more of the qualities inherent in good read- 
ing, it is safe to assume similar deficiencies 
in the rest of the class. Two or three medium 
pupils may be called upon and marked. 

144 



EXPRESSION 

With a very simple selection, five of the 
poorest readers might be tried and rated 

§2. Appreciation — Study of the Text-Book 

Appreciation deals with the content of the 
lesson, with the reading matter, as such. It 
implies ability to miderstand and give the 
meaning of the lesson, tell the story briefly, 
note the chief points in the discussion, and 
illustrate the significance of what has been 
read. The subject to be considered may be 
the usual reading lesson, or it may be a 
memory selection, a passage in history or 
geography, or it may even include a problem 
in arithmetic. 

Further study will call for explanation of 
allusions which occur, for a knowledge of 
the author, similar selections, etc., and for a 
description of the background in which the 
action takes place, or the description is set. 
Appreciation should lead to further study, 
and this is encouraged when the pupil knows 
where to go for similar selections, and what 
other works the author wrote. 

145 



TEACHING EFFICIENCY 

More detailed analysis demands topical 
study of the lesson. The pupils should be 
able to go through a piece or paragraph, pick 
out the topic or the topic sentence of each 
paragraph, and arrange them in outline 
form. Then they should amplify the outline 
which they have constructed, using words 
and expressions of their own in the process. 
One is reminded of what Franklin did with 
the Spectator. ' ' I took some of the papers, ' ' 
writes he, *^and, making short hints of the 
sentiment in each sentence, laid them by a 
few days, and then, without looking at the 
book, tried to complete the papers again, by 
expressing each hinted sentiment at length, 
and as fully as it had been expressed before, 
in any suitable words that should come to 
hand. Then I compared my 'Spectator' 
with the original, discovered some of my 
faults, and corrected them.'' 

The structure and the style of the selec- 
tion may be studied, but without any attempt 
at formal definition or naming. Pupils can 

146 



EXPRESSION 

be then required to show how one paragraph 
leads to the other, how the transitions are 
made, how each paragraph is guided by the 
general theme or subject, and how the same 
idea is expressed and amplified by the vari- 
ous expressions. Sequence and organization 
become a part of the study. 

Finally, word study for meaning, style, 
(clearness, force, elegance), and grammati- 
cal arrangement completes a thorough ap- 
preciation. Formal definition should be 
avoided in this, and no attempt need be made 
to use rhetorical terminology. The pupil 
should be able to substitute words for those 
in the lesson, and should give, if possible, 
different words which are used to express 
the same idea, words based on the same 
stems, opposites, plural expressions, and 
so on. 

In summary, the merits in a complete 
appreciation and study of text are the 
following : 

147 



TEACHING EFFICIENCY 

Appreciation and study of text- 
book 100 
General meaning and story 20 
Background, allusions, etc. 20 
Topical study, outline, etc. 20 
Sequence and organization 20 
Word study, etc. 20 

That children do not know how to use the 
text-book is a common complaint. They may 
try to study a lesson verbatim, word for 
word, without attempting to get the mean- 
ing of the whole before beginning detailed 
study. They may be unable to take a num- 
ber of paragraphs, and without prompting 
by the teacher, to express the thought in each 
paragraph by means of a topic or sentence. 
At times it may be found that the class is 
unfamiliar with the whole work from which 
a selection is taken. For the children simply 
to Hell what they have read or studied,' is 
only a part of the entire result which is to 
be attained. 

148 



EXPHESSION 

§5. Manual Expression 
In a narrow and technical sense, manual 
work refers to such activities as, drawing, 
modeling, weaving, sewing, cooking, shop 
work, and the like. Written work m com- 
position and dictation, penmanship, etc., are 
also manual expression in part, and are sub- 
ject to the same standards. Written work, 
however, has a content peculiarly its own, 
and on this account requires separate treat- 
ment as given below (page 158). 

After the pupils have finished using the 
material, and have produced a definite ob- 
ject, a proper setting is usually in evidence. 
This setting may consist of margination, 
mounting, covering, boxing, etc., according 
as the results are obtained in drawing, mod- 
eling, sewing, cooking, shop work, etc. The 
same general excellence is to be looked for 
in all, the variation depending upon the 
kind of material used. The work as such 
can not be considered as finished until it has 
received its proper background or setting. 

149 



TEACHING EFFICIENCY 

Grood results will show proper spacing, 
arrangement, and proportion of parts. 
Colors should be in harmony, the material 
should be adequate, and the size of the object 
and the amount of material used should be 
commensurate with the purpose in view. 
For example, to teach a class how to make 
strawberry shortcake, it is not necessary to 
feed each pupil and half of the teaching 
corps with strawberry shortcake. Nor in 
shopwork, is it necessary to use the work of 
the pupils to supply the neighborhood with 
cutting boards or stools. In sucn cases the 
amount of material is not commensurate 
with the purpose of the work. The general 
form of the objects made b}^ the pupils 
should be neat and j^leasing to the eye. 

Work done by the pupils should be tick- 
eted or labeled. On one side of the tag the 
pupil should write his name, class, and 
school ; on the other side he might indicate 
the date when the work was finished, the 
date when it was begun, the time taken to 

150 



EXPRESSION 

complete it, and possibly, the amount and 
cost of the material needed. 

Sequence and organization in the pro- 
duction of the results are merits worthy of 
attention. Has the task been planned so as 
to secure results economically and expedi- 
tiously ? Has the work any meaning to the 
children ? Is it a barren, scholastic exercise, 
or does it apply in some manner to the lives 
of the pupils ? Do they know what it is all 
about ? For example, is the patch made in 
the sewing lesson a patch in dbstracto, or is 
it one in a pair of pantaloons or in a real 
jacket? Is the cooking such as the children 
should do at home, or is it concerned with 
pastry and tidbits ? Has the drawing, color 
w^ork, design, or shop work any relation to 
outside industries, or to other school sub- 
jects, as, geography, nature study, science, 
or arithmetic ? Do the problems in weaving, 
modeling, scissor work, etc., connect in any 
manner with the children's practical experi- 
ence, and with the language or number work 

161 



TEACHING EFFICIENCY 

of the school ? Finally, have the different 
objects produced by the children any rela- 
tion to one another? Can they all be in- 
cluded in a unity of meaning ? Is the term's 
work a correlated whole, in which each part 
and each product follow, one out of the 
other? 

Neatness, cleanliness, and a general trim 
appearance inhere in the best work. Spots, 
stains, finger marks, rough edges, lack of 
finish, etc., are to be counted against the 
work in this particular. 

In summary, the excellencies to be looked 
for in manual work are as follows : 

Manual expression 100 

General setting 20 

Proportion, harmony, etc. 20 

Name, date, etc, 20 

Sequence and organization 20 

Neatness and cleanliness 20 

It is still too common to find teachers of 
special subjects averse to supervision, and 
to criticism and suggestion from the head of 

152 



EXPRESSION 

the school. There may exist a vague idea 
that the head of the school is better qualified 
to look after the three R's, and that these 
essentially limit his domain in the matter 
of instruction. If a principal or head of a 
school is responsible for everything that 
goes on within it, and for the results which 
are to be obtained, it seems reasonable to 
assume that he should have standards and 
measures for the different activities which 
are going on. He should not hesitate to 
check up and rate all the work, whether this 
is manual, special, or other kind. 

A fault which can be charged against 
much of the manual work is its splendid 
isolation. It moves grandly onwards, and 
is apparently indifferent to the surging 
activities outside of the school, and the 
buzzing interests withm it. It seems not too 
much to ask, for example, that the kinder- 
garten manual expression lead up to the 
content number work and the oral expres- 
sion of the first school year; that drawing 

153 



TEACHING EFFICIENCY 

be correlated closely with geography, indus- 
trial exercises, and science ; that sewing and 
cooking make a considerable appeal to the 
home interests and occupations of the chil- 
dren; that, in short, special subjects ; weave 
their exercises and their results into the 
experiences of the pupils, and connect as 
much as possible with the grade work. 
Where this is not f omid, the deficiency is to 
be checked up under the heading of sequence 
and organization. 

A numerical basis can be used in rating 
the results under the other headings. Each 
pupil can be held responsible for proper set- 
ting, proportion, etc., as explained above. 
With the register of the class or the attend- 
ance as the denominator, the different excel- 
lencies in the manual work can be counted 
up and rated. 



154 



EXPRESSION 

§4, Motor Expression 
When a dramatization, a drill, or a dance 
has been prepared, specific excellencies are 
to be kept in mind in judging of the work. 
How is the grouping? Are the children 
massed properly? Are there centers of 
interest, adequate contrasts, and unified 
arrangement ? In their actions, do the chil- 
dren move naturally, gracefully, and quiet- 
ly ? Are these actions a part of the story or 
of the feeling they are supposed to repre- 
sent ? Do the individuals in the group move 
promptly on time, and in proper rhythm? 
Is there good response to music, cue, pre- 
ceding speaker, or leader? Is it necessary 
for the teacher to direct and be in evidence, 
or does the action go along of itself, under 
full control of the children themselves? 
Finally, are the postures easy and natural, 
and in harmony with the meaning of the 
presentation ? 

Giving motor expression 100 credits, each 
of the following aspects may be valued at 20 : 

155 



TEACHING EFFICIENCl 



Motor expression 


100 


Grouping 


f20 


Actions 


20 


Time, rhythm 


20 


Response 


20 


Posture 


20 



Dramatization and dancing are infants in 
the general school family of subjects, and 
must be handled with care. One may see 
them so seldom that one fears to arrest such 
activities by giving criticisms and direc- 
tions. To comment upon their excellence or 
lack of excellence seems much like looking 
a gift horse in the mouth, especially where 
extra time, labor, and expense have been 
necessary. Still, faults are faults in the most 
commendable of endeavors, and must be 
indicated if they are present — though this 
should be done slowty and gently. 

In dancing, drills, etc., a common de- 
ficiency is an indifference to time and 
rhythm. The children do not keep step, nor 

156 



EXPRESSION 

do they keep time with the music. Consid- 
erable practice is often necessary to secure 
good rhythm, and often the children must 
be selected for the attainment of the best 
results. Many pretty effects are often 
spoiled by this weakness. 

Sometimes, in dramatization, dancing, or 
drill work, the grouping is not managed as 
well as it might be. The children often 
straggle, break formations, interfere with 
one another, and do not keep a unit forma- 
tion. This may be due to either a lack of 
discipline and control, or to lack of sufficient 
drilling. Proper grouping sometimes con- 
stitutes the essence of the meaning which 
the motor expression is intended to convey. 

While the children are presenting their 
work, the teacher should not be in evidence. 
It spoils the general effect if the teacher 
hovers around, steps in to direct, or enters 
the 'unity of place' in which the action takes 
place. The responses of the pupils should 
be automatic, or directed by the cues of the 

157 



TEACHING EFFICIENCY 

preceding speakers, or by one of their own 
number. 

§5. Written Expression 

Written work can be judged under two 
general headings, (1) form, and (2) content. 
In most cases it refers particularly to work 
in composition and dictation. 

As regards the form of the written work 
which is examined, one can reasonably ex- 
pect that proper margins are kept, one on 
each side of the paper ; that the body of the 
written matter is spaced from above and 
below, and not pushed up close to the top ; 
that the name and date are written in a set 
place on the paper, each paper being the 
same in this particular ; that both topics and 
subtopics are at the top of the paper under 
the title or heading; and finally, that the 
work is clean, without blots, blurs, or dirt 
marks. 

Arranged in serial order these excellencies 
are: 



158 



EXPRESSION 




Written work— Form 


100 


Margin, ruling 


20 


Spacing, arrangement 


20 


Name, elate 


20 


Title, heading 


20 


Blurs, blots 


20 



In the checking up of the form of written 
work, several inaccuracies will usually be 
found. No margins may be kept, or there 
may be conspicuous ruling in pencil to help 
the pupil keep a margin. Such ruling is to 
be counted as error. A good test for margi- 
nation, is to distribute paper without ruling 
of any kind, and have the children write a 
sentence or two. The names and dates on 
the written papers, unless the pupils have 
been properly instructed, will be carelessly 
written, and written differently as regards 
placing and arrangement on the papers. 
Dirty papers, or papers in which the writing 
is marked with blots or blurs, can readily 
be counted. 

159 



TEACHING EFFICIENCY 

One may take either the median paper for 
such examination and rate it on the values 
suggested, or five of the best papers, and 
five of the worst. While it may take more 
time, however, to correct each paper in the 
pack, and count up the errors on each paper, 
it is well worth the trouble in the improve- 
ment which results. Succeeding correction 
will involve less labor and will find fewer 
inaccuracies, these being chiefly confined to 
the blots and blurs which seem to persist 
where ink is used. 

On the side of content, written work can 
be rated for its spelling, punctuation, para- 
graphs, sequence and organization, and 
grammar, (misuse of 'and'). In spelling 
and punctuation, each paper may be comited 
as wrong, if it contains one or two errors. 
Paragraphs and paragraph structure are 
considered as deficient if any paper has 
more or less paragraphs than the number 
which the outline of topics calls for, or if the 
paragraph form is violated. Sequence and 

160 



EXPRESSION 

organization imply that the matter of the 
composition has some relation to the chil- 
dren's experience, studies, or interests, and 
that the composition reads smoothly from 
paragraph to paragraph. Gross error in 
grammar, or the abuse of *and' in a com- 
position counts as failure. 

In summary, the values of the content of 
written work are : 



Written work — Content 


100 


Spelling 


20 


Punctuation 


20 


Paragraphs 


20 


Sequence and organization 


20 


'And,' Grammar 


20 



Where there has been a lack of prelimi- 
nary oral work and topical development, it 
is usual to jBind a number of compositions 
wrong in the number of paragraphs, with a 
corresponding looseness in the general struc- 
ture. The cover sheet of the pack may 
bravely show three topics for paragraphs. 

161 



TEACHING EFFICIENCY 

Count of the compositions may yield only a 
small number whieli have three paragraphs, 
the rest varying from one paragraph to six 
or seven. Again there may be found the 
dictated composition, in which there is such 
a suspicious similarity in expressions, intro- 
ductions, etc., throughout the work, that one 
suspects that much of the composition has 
been remembered by the pupils, or copied 
from the board. It is a very easy matter 
to detect this by counting the number of 
papers which use the same predominating 
expressions. 

In mostly all written work the *and' habit 
is one most difficult to suppress. Composi- 
tion after composition in a set will show 
*and, etc.,' where the structure calls for a 
period, new sentence, and capital letter. 
One or two violations of this kind can be 
considered enough to count the paper out. 

While the form and content of written 
work call for eight merits, the errors which 
require most attention are blurs and blots, 

162 



EXPRESSION 

spelling, punctuation, and *and' or gram- 
mar. Once a teacher understands what ex- 
cellencies are looked for, and which of them 
is to be specially guarded against, the work 
of correction can be done very rapidly. In 
the beginning, the work of correcting com- 
positions is somewhat laborious, but it soon 
becomes easier. A teacher can be expected 
to look over a set each month. It is sufficient 
if the principal goes through a set for each 
class once a term. If the median composi- 
tion is selected for correction, this can take 
place each week. 

In written work and in manual expres- 
sion, each paper or object is counted as a 
unit in each of the values checked. For 
example, in the correction of a set of com- 
positions, errors in margins, spacing, etc., 
are rapidly scored, an arbitrary marking, 
as, line, cross, check, circle, shaky line, etc., 
being used for each of the errors. These 
errors are then counted, each paper count- 
ing one. The results will then appear some- 

163 



TEACfflNG EFFICIENCY 

tiling like the following; margins and rul- 
ing, papers wrong 6; spacing and arrange- 
ment, 2 ; name and date, 5 ; title and heading, 
8 ; blurs and blots, 17. If the total number of 
papers in the set is 34, each incorrect paper 
will count 0.5882 out of the total of 20. ( See 
table, page 33). The ratings which result 
will then be as follows : margins and ruling, 
20 — - 3.12 == 16.88 ; spacing and arrange- 
ment, 20 — 1.17 = 18.83 ; name and date, 
20 — 2.94 = 17.06; title and heading, 20 — 
4.70 = 15.30 ; and blots and blurs, 20 — 10 = 
10 ; total, 78.07. A similar numerical valua- 
tion can be given for the content of written 
expression, and for the different excellencies 
enumerated under the heading of manual 
expression. 



164 



VII 

ARITHMETIC 

§1, Addition 

For testing in simple formal addition, 
arrange a series of figures as follows : 

123456789 10 

11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 

111 112 113 114 115 116 117 118 119 120 

Etc., etc., etc. 

Have the pupils add to each one, 1, 2, 3, etc., 
within the limits of the grade requirements. 
Then use as addends, 11, 12, 13, etc.. Ill, 
112, 113, etc., and on through figures of four 
or five places. In this way it will be possible 
to find out what ability the pupils possess in 
reading numbers, writing them, and in con- 
tinuous, simple addition. 

The following graduation of difficulties is 
good to test a class and to discover at what 
point in the series the pupils break : 

165 



TEACHING EFFICIENCY 



(1) No carrying 






1 12 113 


1114 


1115 


+ 3 +13 +13 


+ 123 


+ 2113 



(2) Carrying in only one place 

1 11 111 1111 1111 
+ 9 +9+19 +19 +91 



(3) Carrying in only two places 

91 91 191 191 111 

+ 9+19 +9+19 +99 



(4) Position of the 

10 120 101 101 1001 
+ 4 +4+14 +9 +191 



A selection of examples from these graded 
examples will enable one to place one's finger 
on the place at which the pupils become con- 
fused in the problem of carrying. Other 
combinations, like, 7 + 4, 8 + 4, etc., can be 
graded in the same manner. A selection of 
types to test the class in * carrying' would 

166 



ARITHMETIC 

be one like the following : 1 +9, 11 + 9, 
111 + 19, 91 +9, 191 +9, 191 + 19, etc. 

Testing of a more advanced type will in- 
clude single and double column addition like 
the following ; 



1 


9 


19 


19 


119 


2 


8 


18 


28 


128 


3 


7 


17 


37 


137 


4 


6 


16 


46 


146 


5 


5 


15 


55 


155 



iWhenever it is possible, it is well to grade 
the difficulties, adding only a single new ele- 
ment at each step. 

A good time test is to assign 50 examples 
in addition with a time allowance of 15 min- 
utes. The examples are all of five addends, 
of two places, and are on printed or dupli- 
cated sheets. All that the pupils have to do 
is to add the columns and write the answers 
under the printed examples. In correcting 
the papers, the teacher counts (1) the num- 
ber done, and (2) the number correct. A 

167 



TEACHING EFFICIENCY 

test like this can be given uniformly through 
the school, on the same day and at the same 
time. It can also be given at the beginning 
of each month. When the results are tabu- 
lated, they can be so arranged as to show: 
(1) average number done correctly for each 
grade; (2) average number done correctly 
for each age; (3) variation and variation 
percent for grade and age; and (4) the 
effects of practice, season, etc. 

In problem work, the chief difficulty for 
the children is in understanding the English 
used, and in interpreting correctly the ex- 
pressions which indicate that addition or 
some other arithmetical process is to be per- 
formed. Problems in addition will make 
use of terms like : add, plus, more, get, gain, 
sum of, had, made, found, saved, etc. Two 
general forms may be used, one, a very sim- 
ple form, as. Had 3e and made 2e more, Hoiv 
much have I? and the other a more complex 
form, as, // a man makes $3 and increases 
this hy $1, how much has he then? and, Mr. 

168 



ARITHMETIC 

Smith has $3, and his brother has $1 more. 
How much have they loth? Simple nuiriber 
analysis may be required, as, What numbers 
added will give 10 f 

Reconstruction work by the pupils re- 
quires greater effort and calls for a more 
accurate knowledge of the work. In calling 
upon the pupils to construct problems of 
their own on a topic, it is advisable to cir- 
cumscribe the situation and define the limits 
set. The materials may be taken from the 
following : 

(1) The home (a) Things 

(h) People 

(c) What is done 

(2) The neighborhood 

(a) Work and industries 
(h) People 
(c) Things 

(3) The school (a) Work and exercises 

(h) People 
(c) Things 

(4) The classroom, as above 

169 



TEACHING EFFICIENCY 

(5) Correlated subjects, as, geography, 
(areas, products, population, exports, im- 
ports, duties, etc.), nature study, word study, 
etc. 

(6) Pictures and the things in them 

(7) Plays and games 

(8) Specific material, as, pads used per 
pupil, supplies each month, cost, etc. 

In such problem work, the situation may 
be given in general or it may be specifically 
determined. Several variations are possi- 
ble, as : 

(1) Make up five problems connected with 
the ivork outside of school, 

(2) Think of some store or husiness in the 
neighborhood. What material do the 
people use f What amounts ? Costs ? 
Make up five problems about them, 

(3) John is a grocer, and sells coffee, tea, 
sugar, butter, eggs, canned goods, etc. 
On Saturday, he does a rushing busi- 
ness. Make up five or ten examples stich 
as he tvill have to do in making up his 

170 



ARITHMETIC 

hills, counting Jiis sales, or reckoning 
his profits. 

(4) Make up five prohleyns on the style of 
the following: A butcher sold, etc. 
Keep to the butcher shop and what the 
butcher does in his shop. 

§2. Subtraction 

A series similar to that used in addition 
can be employed in trying out the pupils in 
subtraction, thus : 

123456789 10 

11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 

111 112 113 114 115 116 117 118 119 120 

Etc., etc. 

Pupils should be required to subtract 1 from 
each of the above, then 11, 111, etc. The 
same process can be carried with other fig- 
ures, as, 12, 22, 13, 23, 33, 112, 122, etc. 

Weakness in borrowing can be detected 
by the use of examples of the following de- 
grees of difficulty : 

171 



TEACHING EFFICIENCY 



(1) No borrowing 






9 19 29 


129 


129 


-1 -1 -11 


-1 


-11 



(2) Borrowing in only one place 

21 121 121 212 212 
_9 _9 -19 -91 _i9i 



(3) Borrowing in only two places 

231 331 1331 1331 4331 
-49 -149 -419 -491 -1491 



(4) Position of the 






20 10 20 


20 


102 


10-4-4 


-14 


-4 



Sets of 4 or 5 examples of the same degree 
of difficulty may be given, and each stage of 
difficulty tried out in this manner. Or a 
series of examples increasing in difficulty 
from no borrowing through borrowing in 
two or three places may be given. 

Problems in subtraction involve the 
equivalents in language for the - sign. Such 

172 



ARITHMETIC 

expressions are, subtract, take away, minus, 
difference, lost, gave away, spent, less thafi, 
left ?, change received ? missing ?, etc. Sev- 
eral examples of the same form but with 
different expressions for subtraction may be 
given to the pupils, to test their understand- 
ing of the terms used. The form may be 
a simple one, as, Take 3 apples from 34 
apples. How many left ? or. Give the differ- 
ence between 43 and 13; or it may be some- 
what more complex, as, // you have $18 and 
spend $3, how much will you have left F or, 
Hoiv much older is Mary than John, if Mary 
is 18 years old, and John is 3 years old? 
Reconstructive exercises may also be re- 
quired of the pupils as in the case of addi- 
tion. Situations are outlined in much the 
same way and the children are asked to make 
up five or ten problems with the material 
given. ( See page 169 ) . 

By combining addition and subtraction 
one can construct problems which involve 
two processes. Simpler problems would rim 

173 



TEACHING EFFICIENCY 

something like the following : // you spend 
3c and give away 2c^ liow much will you have 
left if you first had 10c. A more complex 
type would be: John has 15 marhles, and 
his hrother has 6 less than he. How many 
have hoth? It is possible to lead up to the 
final problem, step by step, and find out 
where pupils fail, thus: (1) John has 15 
marhles and his irother has 9. How many 
have the ttvo hoys? (2) John has 15 marhles, 
and his brother 5 less. How many has his 
irotherf (3) John has 15 marbles and his 
brother has 7 less. Hoiv many have the two ? 
A similar series is the following : (1) Gave 
away 8c. Hoiv much left out of 20c? (2) 
Spent 5c out of a total of 20c. Hoiv much 
left 9 (3) Spent 5c and gave away 4c. What 
was the total? (4) Spent 5c and gave away 
Ic. How much left out of a total of 18c? 
Problems like the above need not be given in 
order of difficulty, but might be effectively 
mixed with other problems and examples. 



174 



ARITHMETIC 

§5. Multiplication 

The simplest test in multiplication is work 
in the multiplication tables, as such, without 
added difficulties, as carrying, or problem 
w^ork. It is advisable to try the pupils rap- 
idly on a multiplication of all numbers from 
1 through 12 by all numbers from through 
12, within the limits of the grade require- 
ments. Keeping to the tables, one can give 
graded work as follows : 

(1) No carrying 

(2) Carrying in one place only 

11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19, etc. 
Multiplication by numbers from 1 through 9 

(3) Carrying in two places only 

122 133 144 155 166 177 188 199, etc., and 
221 331 441 551 661 771 881 991, etc. 
Multiplication by numbers from 1 through 9 

(4) Carrying in three or more places, and 
multiplication by 10, 11 and 12. 

After the pupils have been tested in 
multiplication which involves simple use of 

175 



TEACHING EFFICIENCY 

the tables, more advanced multiplication 
may be required in the following stages of 
difficulty : 

(1) No carrying 

111 122 123 213 312, etc., multiplied by 
numbers like 11, 12, 21, 22, 23, 31, 32, 33, etc. 

(2) Carrying in only one place 

111 122 123 213 312, etc., multiplied 
by numbers like 61, 71, 62, 72, etc., and 
16, 17, 26, 27, etc. 

(3) Carrying in two or more places 

In problems which call multiplication into 
use there are several types which may be 
used. One involves the use of determinate 
units, as, feet in - yards; quarts in - gallons; 
quarts in - pechs, etc. A second type em- 
ploys indeterminate units, as. Pieces of soap 
in - hoxes, each of which holds - pieces ; Seats 
in - rooms, if each room has - seats; Boohs 
on - shelves, if each shelf holds - hooks, etc. 
A third kind of problem is the usual : Cost 
of — , at -a piece, etc. A fourth possibility 
is the simple area and surface problem, Area 

176 



ARITHMETIC 

of a room 15 feet square? or, Area of a yard 
25 feet hy 40 feet f 

The four types enumerated above require 
but a single process, one of multiplication. 
A combination of these types will yield 
problems which necessitate two or more pro- 
cesses. Thus we may have the following: 
Cost of 3 dozen pens at 2c a pen? Value of 5 
gallons of milk at 4c a pint? Weight of 8 
"boxes of canned tomatoes^ each hox holding 
144 cans, if each can weighs 2 pounds? Each 
of the difficulties in a more complex type 
can be brought out in a single example, thus : 

(1) Weight of 144 cases if each tveighs 288 
pounds each? 

(2) Hotu many cans of tomatoes in 8 boxes, 
if each hox holds 144 cans? 

(3) How much will 1100 cans weigh at 2 
pounds a can? 

(4) How much tvill a box of 144 cans weigh, 
if each can weighs 2 pounds? 

(5) Weight of 8 boxes of canned tomatoes 
if each box holds 144 cans, and each can 
weighs 2 pounds, 

177 



TEACHING EFFICIENCY 
Another series is the following : 

(1) How many things in 35 dozen? 

(2) Cost of 200 pens at 2c a pen? 

(3) Cost of 35 dozen pens at 2c a pen? 

These problems may be given in graded 
series, or they may be presented at random, 
or mixed up with other examples. They will 
enable one to check up the pupils on the diffi- 
culties involved in the final, complex type. 

Pupils should be required to make up 
problems as in the case of addition and sub- 
traction and with similar material (page 
169) . If the pupils have been encouraged to 
collect circulars, advertisements, bids, etc., 
there should be a plentiful supply of ma- 
terial at hand. Tests based on such material 
will require the pupils to construct five or 
ten problems which deal with bills such as 
are made out in the stores, with expenses 
such as are incurred in the shop, the home, 
etc., with cost of school supplies, etc., and 
with area, space, etc. 

178 



ARITHMETIC 

Addition and subtraction may be com- 
bined with multiplication to form problems 
of further difficulty. Two, three, or four 
processes may be necessary. Several types 
may be given, as : 

(1) Bought - pounds of candy at 6c a pound, 
and sold it for 10c a pound. Gain on the 
candy f 

(2) Bought - gallons of vinegar at 8c a 
quart. If - gallons leaked out, and I 
sold the rest at 15 a quart, gain or loss 
and how much? 

(3) Bought - gallons of milk at 15c a gallon, 
and sold it at 9c a quart. Gain or loss 
and how much? 

(4) A gang of 20 men work for a week at $2 
a day. Then 10 more men come, and 
they all ivork for 2 tveeks. What will 
the total wages he for the 3 weeks? 

§4, Division 

Graded tests in division will proceed ac- 
cording to the following series : 

179 



TEACHING EFFICIENCY 

(1) Short division with no remainders 
77-^7, 88-^8, etc., 147-^7, 168-^8, 
etc., 714 -^ 7, etc., etc. 

(2) Same as (1) but with remainders 

(3) Long division with no remainders 
21-^21, 63-^21, 231-^21, 168-^21, 
etc., etc. 

(4) Same as (3) but with remainders 
Exactly where the pupils find difficulty, 
whether in trial divisor, remainder, carry- 
ing the cipher, etc., can be discovered by 
giving a series of examples which are gradu- 
ated in difficulty. 

Problems in division fall into two or three 
types: (1) sharing or partition, as, Share 

evenly among 23 hoys, or, If 36 pens 

cost -, what is the cost of 1 pen? (2) measur- 
ing or division, as, How many 5c hooks can 
you get for |? - ? or, IIoiv many 6 inch pieces 
of rihion can you cut out of - inches of 
rihlon? and, (3) analysis and missing part 
problems, in which the process of multipli- 
cation is reversed, as, <9 X ? == 360^ An area 

180 



ARITHMETIC 

of - square feet measures 15 feet on one side. 
How long is the other side? Any of the 
examples in multiplication can be converted 
to problems in division by changing the 
parts, making the answer one of the given 
parts, and one of the given parts, the answer 
to be found. By making use of the material 
suggested above, (page 169), pupils may 
construct problems of their own, with divi- 
sion the chief process. 

Division calls into play all the processes, 
addition, subtraction, and multiplication, 
besides division itself. It also makes use of 
selective judgment in trial divisor, and is 
the best of the four processes to test pupils 
formally. All the grades in the school may 
be given a 15 minute test in short division, 
with examples of the type, 7 ) 34291. Fifty 
such examples on printed or duplicated 
sheets are given to the children, a time allow- 
ance of 15 minutes is set, and the pupils are 
asked to write the answers on the sheets 
given. If the test is given on the same day 

181 



TEACHING EFFICIENCY 

and the same time, averages, variations, and 
variation percents can be calculated for each 
grade, each age, and if need be, each nation- 
ality under the two headings, grade and age. 
Such tests may be given at the beginning of 
each month to test progress and habit for- 
mation. It will be found that the division 
test correlates most closely with general 
ability in arithmetic, than do most of the 
other formal tests. 

§5. Fractions 

Reduction of fractions can be tested in 
short division with remainder, as, 39-^9, 
and in the addition and subtraction of frac- 
tions. Examination of pupils in the addi- 
tion and subtraction of fractions can be car- 
ried on in work of the following degrees of 
difficulty : 

(1) Identicals, no reduction nor borrowing 

% Vs iVe 3V9 

±V4 ±% ±% ±179 

182 



ARITHMETIC 

(2) Factors, no reduction nor borrowing 

A /s 1/2 3 /q 

±% ±% db V4 ±273 

(3) Primes, no reduction nor borrowing 

V2 V4 IV3 3V5 

(4) Identicals, with reduction or borrowing 

1% iVs 376 5% 

rb % Hz 7s dzlVe ±3% 

(5) Factors, with reduction or borrowing 

1% 1% 4% 573 

± 72 ± Vs ±172 ±379 

(6) Primes, with reduction or borrowing 

173 275 6V2 5V2 

± 72 ± % dz2V3 d=2V5 

Pupils may be tested in several examples of 
the same type, or in a series of several ex- 
amples taken from types (1), (2), etc. 



183 



TEACHING EFFICIENCY 

Cancellation and examples in multiplica- 
tion which involve fractions can be graded 
as follows : 

(1) Parts of a whole number 

1/2 of 12, 1/3 of 12, 1^ of 144, % of 12, etc. 

(2) Multiplication by a mixed number. 
12x11/2, 12x31/3, 144X1%, 36 X 
21/2, etc. 

(3) Parts of a fraction, mixed number, and 
cancellation. 

V2 of %, 1/3 of 34, 1/2 of 1/3, 1/3 of 11/2, 
V2 X 1/3 X % X 11/5, etc. 

Gradation in division by fractions gives 
the following types : 

(1) Division of a whole number by a frac- 
tion, as, 2, 3, 4, etc., divided by %, %, 
1/4, etc., and then by %, %, %, etc. 

(2) Division of a fraction by a whole num- 
ber, (1) reversed. 

(3) Division of a fraction by a fraction, as, 

1/2 - 1/3, % - 1/2, % - 2/3, etc. 

(4) Use of mixed numbers, as, 1% ^ 2, etc., 
2 - 11/2, etc., 1/2 -- 11/2, etc., II/3 -^ II/2, 
etc., and II/2 -7- 1%, etc. 

184 



ARITHMETIC 

(5) More complicated forms which combine 
addition, subtraction, multipl ication, 
and division. 

A few simple questions like the following 
will quickly enable one to get a general idea 
of what a class knows in fractions : ^^ + %, 

Vs + V2, 1/2 - Vs, 1/2 -^ Vs, 1/3 - 1/2, V% X Vs, 

etc. 

Problems which involve manipulation of 
fractions are much the same as the problems 
suggested for work in addition, subtraction, 
multiplication, and division. It might be 
well to give these problems first with whole 
numbers, and then with the addition of frac- 
tional parts to one, two, or three elements of 
the problem. A series like the following 
will result : 

(1) Cost of 2 dozen pens at 3c a pen? 

(2) Cost of 2^2 dozen pens at 3c a pen? 

(3) Cost of 2 dozen pens at SYoC a penf 

(4) Cost of 2y2 dozen pens at 3y2C a pen? 

185 



TEACHING EFFICIENCY 

For other types see the work outlined above 
(pages 168, 173, 174, 176, 177, 179, 180). 
Reconstructive work in fractions will fol- 
low similar lines (See pages 169, 170). 

§6. Decimals 

For a test on the ability of the pupils to 
read and write decimals, the following series 
may be used: 1. .1 .001 10 .01 .0001 
1 . 01 10 . 1 etc. Pupils may be required to 
read them, write them at dictation, or ar- 
range them for addition or subtraction. 

For multiplication the work may be 
graded as follows: 

(1) Multiplication by a whole number, as, 
.31X2, .313X3, .34X4, .313X40, 
etc. 

(2) Multiplication by a decimal, as, .31 X .2, 
.313 X .22, etc. 

(3) Use of mixed numbers, as, 3.13 X .2, 
3.13 + .6, 3.13 X .22, 3.13 X 4.4, etc. 

Graduation of the work in division will 
jdeld the following series : 

186 



ARITHAIETIC 

(1) Division by a whole number, as, . 66 -> 2, 
.66^5, .06H-2, .06^-5, etc. 

(2) Division by a decimal, as, .66->-.2, 
.66-^ .5, .06-^ .2, .06-^.02, etc. 

(3) Use of mixed numbers, as, 6.6-^-2, 
6.6-f-.2, 6.6-f-2.2, 6 . 6 -- . 22, etc. 

A combination example which will test 
ability to handle decimals is the following : 
Divide 360 hy 12, lyl.2, ly 120, and hy .12, 
and add the results, A more complex ex- 
ample along the same lines is : 360 -^1.2, 
3.6-^ 120, 360 -^ . 12, 36 -^ 1200. Add the 
results. If it is necessary to find out exactly 
where pupils have any difficulty, a graded 
series is better. The series may use the same 
numbers all through, the only variations 
being in the position of the decimal point, 
as: 4-^2, 4-f- .2, 4-^20, .4-^2, .4-20, 
. 4 -^- . 2, . 4 -^ . 02, etc. Problems will follow 
the same types as those given in the work of 
simple numbers (pages 168-180) and frac- 
tions (pages 185, 186). Reconstructive exer- 
cises will be similarly conditioned (pages 

187 



TEACHING EFFICIENCY 

169, 170). Examples which involve dollars 
and cents require a knowledge of decimals 
and the use of the decimal point. 

§7. Compound Numbers 

The use of simple denominate units is im- 
plied in work which applies multiplication 
and division (pages 177-181). The inch- 
foot, foot - yard, pint - quart, quart - gallon, 
quart - pech, day - week, cent - nickel, cent - 
dime, dime - dollar, thing - dozen, etc., may 
be used in examples which call for multipli- 
cation or division by 2, 3, 4, 5, 7, 8, 10 and 12. 
If pupils fail in such simple work it may be 
necessary to test them in their denominate 
measures. 

All work in compound numbers falls into 
two general divisions: (1) reduction de- 
scending, and (2) reduction ascending. 
Graded examples in these two divisions will 
go somewhat as follows : 
(1) Reduction descending 

188 



ARITHMETIC 

(a) Two steps, as, quarts to pints, 
gallons to quarts, quarts and pints to 
pints, gallons and quarts to quarts, and 
similarly with the other measures 

(b) Three steps, as, gallons to pints, 
etc., gallons and quarts to pints, etc., 
gallons, quarts, and pints, to pints, etc. 

(c) Subtraction, as, pints from 
quarts, quarts from gallons, etc. 

(d) Division, as, sharing gallons 
among individuals, gallons and quarts, 
gallons, quarts, and pints, etc. 

(2) Reduction ascending 

(a) Two steps, as, pints to quarts, 
quarts to gallons, pints to quarts and 
pints, quarts to quarts and gallons, etc. 

(b) Three steps, as, inches, to inches, 
feet, and yards, quarts to hushels, pecks, 
and quarts, etc. 

(c) Addition and multiplication, two 
orders, three orders, etc. 

Practical work in compound numbers as- 
sumes the following forms : 

189 



TEACHING EFFICIENCY 

(1) Cost problems which involve either re- 
duction ascending or descending, as, 
Cost of - 'bushels, etc, at 5 cents a quart, 
or 1.20 a husJiel? Cost of - quart, etc., 
at 25c a gallon? 

(2) Problems in the four rules, addition, 
subtraction, multiplication, and divis- 
ion, as, additions, leakage, loss, sharing, 
etc. 

(3) Fractional or decimal parts of denomi- 
nate units 

(4) Areas, contents, etc. 

If the pupils fail in any problem, it can be 
given to them in a number of simpler forms, 
thus: 

(1) Cost of 53 pints of milk at 5c a pint? 

(2) How many pints in 23 quarts and 1 
pint 9 

(3) Hotv many pints in 6 gallons, 2 quarts, 
and 1 pint ? 

(4) Cost of 6 gallons, 2 quarts, 1 pint of 
milk at 5c a pint ? 

190 



ARITHMETIC 

These steps may be given in the order (4) 
through (1), or (1) through (4), or they 
may be presented at random and mixed with 
other problems in the test. Reconstructive 
exercises may be required as suggested above 
(pages 169, 170). 

§8. Percentage 

Knowledge of percentage, as such, is 
tested in much the same manner as is knowl- 
edge of decimals. A series of examples like 
the following may be given: 2 X 12, 
.02 X 12, 2% of 12, 1/2 of 12, 1/2% of 12, 
2%% of 12, etc. In the more advanced 
stages of the work, examples may be mixed 
like the following: 2% of 36, 20% of 36, 
1/2% of 36, 50% of 36, 5% of 36, Difference 
between 2% of 36 and 1/2% of 36 ? Between 
1/2% of 36, and 50% of 36? 

Problems in percentage involve the use of 
different expressions for the base on which 
the percentage is reckoned, as, cost, pro- 
ceeds, sales, list price, face, principal, real 

191 



TEACHING EFFICIENCY 

estate, personal property, policy, etc., and 
the employment of the corresponding terms 
which indicate tlie percentage, as, profit, 
loss, commission, allowance, relate, rate, dis- 
count, interest, tax, assessment, levy, fee, 
premium, specific duty, ad valorum, etc. If 
one wishes to find out whether the pupils 
understand the significance of the terms, one 
can give problems in which the numbers are 
the same, but the expression different. Such 
problems can be given at random and mixed 
with other work. Interest may be graded 
somewhat as follows : 



rincip^ 


il Time Rate 


$36 


1 year 2% 


$36 


lyr. 6 months 2% 


$36 


lyr. 6mos. 15 days 2% 


$36 


From Feb. 6, 1912, to date 



Required, Interest and amomit 
Reconstructive exercises are also in order 
(See pages 169, 170). 



192 



ARITHMETIC 
§9, Indirect Cases. 

The type form, What part of - is - ? may 
be graded as follows; (1) Use of \Yliole 
numbers in the given elements, as. What part 
of 36 is 12f (2) Use of fractions or mixed 
numbers in one or both of the given ele- 
ments, as, What part of 4 is lYo? What part 
of y^isYo"^ (3) Use of denominate units in 
the given elements, as. What part of 3 quarts 
are 5 pints'^ (4) Use of decimals in the 
given elements, as. What part of 3.6 is . 012? 
Combination of decimals and fractions, as, 
What part of 3.6 is %? Three variations 
are possible in the requirements of each of 
the series. Either the fractional part, the 
decimal part, or the percent may be asked 
for in the answer. 

Indirect cases of the equation type vary 
from examples which can be done at sight, 
to those which require two or three pro- 
cesses to solve the equation. Graduation of 
the difficulties will give the following : 

193 



TEACHING EFFICIENCY 

(1) 12 is 1/3 of what number'? 

(2) 12 is % of what number? 

(3) 12 is V3 more than (less than) 

what number ? 

(4) 12 is % of what number ? 

(5) 2% is 1/3 of what number ? 

(6) 2% is % of what number ? 
(More than, less than) 

(7) % is 1/2 of what number? 

(8) % is % of what number ? 
(More than, less than) 

Applications of this type of work can be 
similarly graded, thus : 

(1) S.P. $360 Loss .25 Cost? 

(2) S.P. $360 Gain 25% Cost? 

(3) S.P. $360 Loss 15% Cost? 

(4) S.P. $360 Gain 15% Cost? 

The terms may be varied, as, commission, 
premium, etc., (See page 192), and recon- 
structive exercises may be required (See 
pages 169, 170). 

194 



ARITHMETIC 

§10, Metric System 

The chief difficulty in examples which in- 
volve the use of the metric system is the 
significance of the terminology. The famili- 
arity of the pupils with the terminology may 
be tested by examples in addition or sub- 
traction which are based on: (1) measure- 
ments of the same denomination, as, all cm, 
or Kg, or mm, etc.; (2) measurements of 
only two denominations, as, cm and dm, Kg 
and g, cm and mm, etc. ; (3) measurements 
of three or more denominations. 

Changes from one system of measurement 
to another, and the use of equivalents, can 
be graded as follows: (1) changes within 
the given table of equivalents directly, as, 
meters to inches, (IM = 39 . 37 inches), 
Kilos to pounds, lKg = 2.2046 lbs.), etc.; 
(2) changes which come within the table of 
equivalents only indirectly, as, meters to 
yards, (meters to yards to inches). Cost of 
Kg at so much a pound, (Kg to lb. X cost 
per lb.), etc. It may be necessary to test the 

195 



TEACHING EFFICIENCY 

pupils on their knowledge of the following 
table of equivalents : 

ji M =39.37 inches 

1 Km = . 62137 miles (% mi.) 

1 L =0.908 dry qt. or 1.0567 
wet qt. (1 qt.) 

1 Kg =2.2046 lbs. (2^^ lis.) 

1 in. =z 2.540 centimeters 

1 ft, =0.3048 meters 

1 yd. =0. 9144 meters 

1 mi. = 1 . 6093 Kilometers 

1 qt. =0. 94636 liters, wet 

1 gal. = 3 . 7854 liters, wet 

1 qt. =1.1012 liters, dry 

1 Tb, =0.45359 Kilos 
Similar units for foreign money may be 
worked out and applied. 

§11. Mensuration 
In its simpler stages, mensuration requires 
chiefly a knowledge of rules and formulas. 
Some of the more important of these are the 
following : 

196 



ARITHIMETIC 

(1) The area of any parallelogram is equal 
to the product of its hase iy its altitude. 

(2) The area of any triangle is equal to 
half the product of its 'base hy its alti- 
tude. 

(3) The area of a circle is equal to the 
product of the square of its radius X 
3.1416, 

(4) The circumference of a circle is equal 
to the product of its diameter X 3.1416, 

(5) The volume of a prism or cylinder 
equals the area of the hase X the 
height, 

(6) The surface of a prism' or cylinder 
equals the product of the perimeter X 
the height, + the area of the upper and 
loiver faces. 

(7) The volume of a pyramid or cone 
equals a third of the product of the 
hase hy the height. 

(8) The surface of a pyramid or a cone 
equals half the product of the peri- 
meter X the slant height, 

197 



TEACHING EFFICIENCY 

(9) The volume of a sphere equals two- 
thirds of the volume of a cylinder of 
the same diameter and height^ or, 
% of -rzr^Xh (2r) ^Vs tt r\ 

(10) The surface of a sphere equals the 
curved surface of a cylinder of the 
same diameter and height, or,2'Kr xh 
(2r) =4'Kr\ 

(11) The square on the hypotenuse is equal 
to the sum of the squares on the other 
two sides. 

In many instances it is enough for the pupil 
to know how to use the rule, without having 
to repeat it by rote. 

^12, General Suggestions 

Tests in arithmetic may require any of 
the following types of work : 

(1) Formal work and examples 

(2) Problems and applications 

(3) Reconstructive exercises, and ex- 

planation of processes 

1S8 



ARITHMETIC 

(4) Knowledge and recognition of the 

terms, expressions, symbols, and of 
a few rules in number work 

The work itself may briefly be classified 
as follows : 

(1) Pour rules 

(a) Addition 
(h) SuMr action 

(c) MtiUiplication 

(d) Division 

(2) Fractions 

(3) Decimals 

[(4:) Compound numbers 

(5) Percentage 

(6) Indirect cases 

In all the grades, the pupils will probably 
be found weak in rapid addition of columns 
of figures. In the lower grades the children 
find difficulty with long division, and with 
some of the tables, notably those from 7 
through 12. Easy control in work which 
calls into use fractions and decimals is 

199 



TEACHING EFFICIENCY 

seldom found in the higher grades. The full 
value of the position of the decimal point is 
not appreciated. In percentage, there seems 
at times a negligence in pointing off the two 
places. The simplest kind of examples, 
using figures as simple as 2, 3, or 4, can 
be used to test the ability of the pupils in 
handling the aspects mentioned. 

In an oral test, a call for hands and a 
random selection of pupils may be sufficient. 
If only a few pupils raise their hands, it 
may be assumed that the rest do not know. 
Or five of the best pupils, five of the mid- 
dling, and five of the poorest may be selected 
to answer. A rating can then be given on 
the numerical basis chosen. Very easy ex- 
amples or problems should be presented in 
such oral work, as. Bought lie worth of 
goods, and gave 25c. Changed John is 15 
years old, and Mary is 8 years older. How 
many years in the ages of hoth? Cost of iV^ 
dozen pens at 2c a penf What is % of 2^2 
dozen? 1^-4-%=? 1/3-^-%==? What is 

200 



AEITHMETIC 

2% of 129 %% of 12? What is the interest 
of $2, for 2 years, at 2%? 

In a written examination, it is advisable 
to have the teacher select the types. The 
figures and the wording may then be slightly 
changed by the principal or head teacher. 
About half the paper should consist of work 
which the whole class can reasonably be ex- 
pected to do, about a quarter should be of 
material so simple that even the poorest 
pupils ought to master it, and the rest should 
be more difficult work to bring out the abili- 
ties of the brighter children. If it is neces- 
sary to find out at what point in a problem 
the class breaks, then graded work should 
be given, or the problem should be worked 
out step by step, a call for hands after each 
step has been worked out indicating how 
many pupils succeeded up to that point. 



201 



VIII 

CONTENT OP OTHER SUBJECTS 

§1. Kinds of Knowledge 

The simplest type of knowledge is that of 
recognition. Though, as such, it requires 
little effort and calls for no great expense 
of energy, it is in constant demand in our 
daily life. For many practical purposes it 
is indispensable. For example, one need do 
little more than recognize the poison tablet, 
know counterfeit money at sight, under- 
stand the significance of specks in tainted 
food, judge between good conduct and evil 
behavior, etc., in order to react properly. 
No long series of events need be recalled, no 
process of reasoning is called into play, nor 
is there required any control of material to 
ensure the simple recognition. "While, no 
doubt, judgment and long training may be 

202 



CONTENT SUBJECTS 

a prerequisite to some of the more difficult 
acts of recognition, once the knowledge has 
become automatic, the acts of recognition 
are immediate and make no demands on 
associative memory, complicated reaction, 
or motor control. 

In school work this recognition is indi- 
cated by simple naming of an object, by loca- 
tion of a situation or event in time or place, 
by giving the significant attributes of a 
thing, by showing its use, and so on. A 
simple sentence is all that is required of the 
pupil. In history, for example, many names, 
events, processes, actions, etc., require for 
practical purposes simply recognition. 
Questions which would call knowledge of 
recognition into play are the following: 
Give sentences which tell something each 
about the following: Washington, slavery, 
Monitor, Declaration of Independence, cot- 
ton gin. Queen Elisabeth, etc. In geography, 
nature study, and science, similar questions 
may be formulated, as, Give for each of the 

203 



TEACHING EFFICIENCY 

following a sentence which tells something 
about each one: Product, Germany, Wash- 
ington, Rhone, industry, flax, etc., or, poli- 
wog, fern, woodpecker, sepal, petal, etc., or, 
magnet, rheostat, vacuum, Newton, etc. 

A type of knowledge which makes a more 
immediate and pressing demand upon the 
pupils is knowledge of recall. Recall in- 
volves memory exercises of the school, and 
is concerned with such topics, as, spelling 
words, dates, lists, definitions, topics, topical 
outlines, memory gems, human activities, 
causal series, etc. A cue is given to the 
children, and they are expected to respond 
with verbal series, written expression, man- 
ual work, etc., and in a more or less extensive 
manner. 

The highest type of knowledge for the 
individual concerned is that of reconstruc- 
tion or control. Considerable initiative and 
ability are often demanded. A problem is 
set before the pupils, material is given, and 
they are told to go ahead. Knowledge of 

204 



CONTENT SUBJECTS 

recognition, knowledge of recall, and ade- 
quate motor and manual responses are put 
to the test. Knowledge of control is de- 
manded when the pupil is called upon to 
exercise his judgment, to put forth effort in 
a manner somewhat different from the rou- 
tine, to handle material in his own way, to 
exercise his selective choice and controlled 
reaction. He may be required to get the 
topics of a series of paragraphs, form a 
topical outline of his own, and then expand 
this outline in his own language. He may 
be allowed to dramatize a situation and add 
words and actions of his own. He may be 
requested to impersonate a character, with 
the direction. What would you do in such a 
case? Or a situation may be presented to 
the class with conditions changed, and the 
pupils may be asked to trace and expand 
possible results. Thus : Suppose the Alle- 
ghany Mountains were as high as the Rock- 
ieSy how would it have effected - ? (Discov- 
eries, settlements, population, etc) What 

205 



TEACHING EFFICIENCY 

if - had not invented the - ? Suppose the 
harbor of - to he clogged up. What would 
the result he on the commerce, population, 
export trade, manufactures, etc. 

In summary, we have as kinds of knowl- 
edge: 

Knowledge of recognition 
Knowledge of recall 
Knowledge of control 

These three types are all relative to the stage 
which the pupil has attained. To the be- 
ginner, knowledge of recognition is very 
limited, and most of his information is the 
result of memory and recall. What required 
considerable judgment and associative mem- 
ory in the earlier stages, however, must take 
its place in the field of recognition, if the 
individual is to progress. The movement is 
ever onwards, effort in all reactions becom- 
ing less, and the horizon ever widening for 
new endeavors. 

206 



CONTENT SUBJECTS 

Simple reference to any of the following 
aspects is sufficient to indicate knowledge of 
recognition : 

Relations 

(1) Quantitative 

Time : Succession, duration, simultaneity 
What folloivs in ti7nef 
What is present at the same time? 
How long ? When f 

Space : Contiguity, distance, direction 
Location f Position f 
Distance f Direction f 

(2) Qualitative 

Characteristics ? Attributes ? 
Substance? Kind? 
Parts? Whole? 

Genus? Species? 

(3) Formal, logical, analytical 

Cause? Effect? 
Similar ? Contrast ? 
Purpose ? Opposite ? 
Use? Design? 
Signi-ficance? Meaning? 

207 



TEACHING EFFICIENCY ' 

(4) Personal ] 

Superior 

Ruler \ 

Employer i 

Parent i 

Etc. ■ ;; 

Equal ' 

Equal \ 
Coworker 

Relative j 

Etc. \ 

Subordinate ] 

Subject .; 
Employee 

Child ] 

Etc. ^ 

It is evident that an extensive use of these j 

relations may give rise to knowledge of re- ; 
call, and call into play considerable control. 

In their first intent, however, they inhere I 
particularly in knowledge of recognition. 

Knowledge of recall embraces memory j 

work in the following subjects and topics : | 

208 1 



CONTENT SUBJECTS 

Spelling 
Reading and pronunciation of words 
Spelling, stem analysis^ meaning, use 
Antonym, synonym, grammatical forms 

History 
Names, dates, events, etc. 
Topics and topical outlines 

Geography 
Names, places, activities, etc. 
Topics and topical outlines 

Study of nature 
Names, processes, products, etc. 
Topics and topical outlines 

English 
Memory gems, selections, etc, 
Nam^es, definitions, forms, in grammar 
Punctuation, written form, paragraph 
structure, etc. 

Music 
Notes, scales, songs, etc. 

Drawing 
Forms, lines, colors, etc. 

209 



TEACHING EFFICIENCY 

General information 

Knowledge of control makes more of a 
demand upon the pupils, and includes work 
in the following : 

Topics and topical outline 

Series of related events 

Dramatic impersonation 

Dramatization 

Reasoning from changed conditions 

Reasoning from given data 

Control of material 

Original problem work and reconstructive 
exercises are here required of the children. 

§2. History and Civics 

While the general forms of knowledge 
may be considered the three above discussed, 
the specific details and content depend upon 
the subject under consideration. For pur- 
poses of testing, one can outline each of the 
subjects in a number of topics and sub- 

210 



CONTENT SUBJECTS 

topics. Examination in United States his- 
tory may be given under any of the follow- 
ing heads : 

Discovery and exploration 

Colonization 

English supremacy 

Colonial supremacy 

The United States 

Use of the text-book 

Current events, holidays, etc. 

In detail, the following facts can be used : 
Discoveries and explorations 
Nationalities 
Spanish, French 
English, Butch 

Localities 

Coast, north, south, middle, etc. 
Inland, west 
South America, etc. 

Purpose, etc. 

European and American backgrounds 

211 



TEACHING EFFICIENCY ^ 

Colonization (as above) \ 

Southern type, Virginia \ 

Northern type, Massachusetts \ 

Middle type, Pennsylvania \ 

Local type, New York (for Neiv \ 

York) I 

Organization, people, activities, life, j 

events, etc. ] 

English supremacy (as above) ; 

Indian wars \ 

■i 

Intercolonial wars \ 

Attempts at union 

European history \ 

Colonial supremacy (as above) \ 

Conflicting interests \ 

New British policy of control \ 

The Revolution ' 
The Constitution 

The United States j 

A dministrations \ 

Industries and invention ^ 

Transportation and communication j 

Education, life, and literature \ 

Money and finance \ 

212 \ 



CONTENT SUBJECTS 

Tariff and slavery 
Wars 

Legislative changes 
National expansion 
Political parties 
European history 
World relations. 
Use of the text-book 

General meaning, story, etc. 
Background, allusions, etc. 
Topical study, outline, etc. 
Sequence and organization 
Word study, etc. 
Holidays and current events 
Civics 
Local, state, national government 
Organization, departments, officials, 

etc. 
Time and place of meeting 
Powers, duties, responsihilities 
Contrihutions, ivork accomplished, 
etc. 
Use of the text-book 
Current events 

213 



TEACHING EFFICIENCY 

§3, Geography 

Ejiowledge in geography may be tested in 
any of the following main divisions : 

Human activities and their products 
Human habitations (Cities, states, 

countries, etc.) 
Surface (Highlands, lowlands, plains, 

rivers, etc.) 
Climate, seasons, day and night, time 
Maps, graphs, cartography, etc. 
Use of the text-book 
Current events 

According to the age and grade of the pupils, 
the above categories may be applied to the 
following topics : 

Home locality and neigJiborhood 
Home city, state, or country 
The world in general 
The United States in detail 
Other countries in detail 

214 



CONTENT SUBJECTS 

The use of the text-book follows the same 
scheme of merits already enumerated, name- 
ly: (1) general meaning of text, illustra- 
tion, map, graph, etc.; (2) background, allu- 
sions, comparisons, etc.; (3) topical study 
and outline; (4) sequence and organization; 
and (5) word study and interpretation. Cur- 
rent events are treated as in the case of the 
other subjects. Individual contributions of 
the pupils should be recorded, credit given 
according to the class register and the num- 
ber contributing, and a general knowledge 
of the leading currents required. 

§4. The Study of Nature 

The same general content inheres in both 
nature study and science. The difference 
in the treatment of the topics distinguishes 
one from the other. Nature study deals with 
description and appreciation, and keeps in- 
tensive analysis in the background. It is 
concerned more with life, function, and 
environment, than mth structure and or- 

215 



TEACHING EFFICIENCY 

ganization. Science makes more of a 
search after cause and effect, requires more 
thorough study of parts, and makes use of 
logical categories and divisions. Both 
science and nature study call for actual con- 
tact with objects, for field work, excursions, 
and controlled experimentation. 

General topics which apply in the study 
of nature are the following : 

External characteristics, form, color, etc. 
Internal characteristics, structure, parts, 

etc. 
Growth, development, function of parts, 

etc. 
Actions, processes, work, life, etc. 
Favorable conditions, environment, etc. 
Uses to man, products, etc. 
Use of the text-book 

Contribution of specimens, apparatus, etc. 
Current events 

The use of the text-book and of current 
events follows the same general scheme out- 

216 



CONTENT SUBJECTS 

lined above (page 213). Each pupil should 
have a record of the experimentation done 
by him, the material contributed, the ap- 
paratus made, etc. With the register of the 
class as a basis, the whole class can be rated 
in this particular. The grade of the pupils 
will determine what aspect of the study of 
plant life, animal life, natural phenomena, 
or man. is to be required. 

§5. Language 

The study of language on its content side 
includes chiefly the following subjects: 

Word study 
Spelling, meaning and use 
Stem, prefix, suffix 
Synonym antonym 

Grammar 
Proper usage 

Naming (parts of sentence, of speech) 
Formal analysis 
Syntax 



217 



TEACmNG EFFICIENCY 

Race inheritance 
Jingles, rhymes^ proverhs, etc. 
Myths, legends, fairy tales, folk-lore^ 

etc. 
Biography, narrative, etc. 
Selections from literature 
Memory gems, etc. 

Written work 

Writing, punctuation, etc. 
Letter forms, paragraphing, etc. 

Library, reading habits, etc. 

In language tests, the questions may deal 
with particular instances, forms, etc., or 
with sentences in series, in paragraph struc- 
ture, etc. Thus, spelling words may be given 
in a list, or in a dictation exercise. Simi- 
larly, word study may be correlated with a 
selection in reading, or may deal with iso- 
lated cases assigned by the teacher. In 
grammar a paragraph may be given, and 
the class required to treat it in any one of 
the following ways : (1) rewrite and change 
to plural (or singular) form, to first person 

218 



CONTENT SUBJECTS 

(second or third), to present time (past or 
future), to different discourse (direct or in- 
direct), to different sentence type (inter- 
rogative, declarative, etc; (2) pick out the 
types of sentence and name each kind; (3) 
pick out parts of speech; (4) analyse sen- 
tences into parts, with diagram, if neces- 
sary; (5) give syntax of selected ivords; and 
so on. Separate sentences may also be given, 
or the text-book may be used and treated as 
suggested. 

On the side of content, composition corre- 
lates closely with the subject matter of the 
grade, and with the children's life history 
and experience. History, geography, nature 
study, science, dramng, reading, games, 
neighborhood life, school life, business, etc., 
Yvill furnish sufficient material on which the 
pupils may be tested. For purposes of ex- 
amination, the formal composition written 
each week or so is not as good as an im- 
promptu test which requires only a single 
paragraph to be written on some topic with 

219 



TEACHING EFFICIENCY 

which the pupils are familiar. Several topics 
may be assigned and the pupils allowed to 
choose one for composition. In correcting 
the paragraphs which have been written, -a 
set of values may be assigned, according to 
the aim of the work, as, paragraph structure, 
margins, punctuation, etc. For example, if 
two merits are looked for, (1) paragraph 
structure, and (2) spelling, each may be 
valued at 5 out of a possible 10. If the con- 
tent in history, or geography, this may also 
be rated on its correctness. 

Dictation may be treated in the same man- 
ner. The content of the dictation may in- 
clude the following : 

(1) Short memory gems and classic prose 
selections 

(2) Short sentences which employ such 
words, as, (1) forms of the verhs, is, do, 
see, come, go, give, write, sing, bring, 
think, break, catch, drive, knotv, throw, 
lie, lay, run, eat, tear, etc., and (2) 
plurals, irregular comparisons, etc, 

220 



CONTENT SUBJECTS 

(3) Short sentences, or a short paragraph 
to illustrate use of the period, comma, 
question mark, and quotation marks, 
etc, 

(4) Common expressions, conventional ex- 
pressions of courtesy, greetings, idio- 
matic expressions, etc, 

(5) Letter forms. 

(6) Correlated material from history, geo- 
graphy, etc. 

Should a prevailing error be discovered in 
composition work of the grade, a dictation 
exercise on the error in question will enable 
one to see what pupils require individual 
attention, and what steps towards correction 
need be taken. 

Paragraph structure may be required in 
tests on meaning and use. Often, the full 
meaning of a word can not be well given in 
a single sentence. Several sentences may be 
required fully to amplify and make clear the 
meaning of the idea expressed by the word. 
Pupils should be asked to write a short para- 

221 



TEACHING EFFICIENCY 

graph for a single word, if necessary, when 
a test in meaning and use is given. In an 
exercise on word analysis, the children may 
be requested to give words having the same 
stem, and being in the same ^family,' to give 
opposites, to tell the usual phrase combina- 
tion in which the word is found, to write 
other grammatical forms of the word, and 
so on. A real spelling test involves much 
more than simple spelling of words. 

To test the use and effects of the library 
one must consider the following points : (1) 
number of books read by each pupil, or used 
by him for reference ; (2) quality of the mat- 
ter read; (3) periodic discussion of current 
events, contents of newspapers, weeklies, etc. 
If there is a list kept of the books read by 
the pupils it will be easy to rate the class in 
this particular, the register of the class be- 
ing taken as the basis. A few questions put 
to the pupils ma}^ be necessary to test to what 
extent the pupils have really made use of the 
books drawn. 



222 



CONTENT SUBJECTS 

§6. Manual Work 

Such exercises as drawing, writing, sew- 
ing, modeling, shop work, etc., are usually 
rated solely from the side of expression. 
Any piece of work, however, may be ex- 
amined from the standpoint of content, ana- 
lysed into a number of parts, and given a 
mark for each part. In the drawing of a 
box or a cylinder, for example, values may 
be assigned to the characteristic lines and 
curves. A single aspect may be made the 
standard and the work counted right or 
wrong as a whole, according as it meets or 
fails to meet the requirements. 

Penmanship may be analysed into several 
merits, as, (1) slant, (2) movement, (3) 
quality of line, (4) legibility, and (5) clean- 
liness. Each of the pupils' papers may be 
marked according to these merits, and a 
value given to the set, on the basis of 20 for 
each excellence. If the papers are arranged 
in the order of legibility and general ap- 
pearance, the median paper may be selected 

223 



TEACHING EFFICIENCY 

and marked. To test specific aspects of pen- 
manship, one can arrange special sets of 
words for loops, small letters, etc. Thus, the 
words, going, going, gone^ contain exactly 
five lower loops. If these words are dictated 
to the class, the papers can be corrected on a 
numerical basis, 2 points out of 10 being 
allowed for each loop. If the same set of 
words is given to each of the grades, it is 
possible to find how the classes compare in 
this particular. Similar series of words can 
be given to test other formations, as. This is 
his happy, happy home, for the upper loop. 
Very many men came, for the m form, and 
so on. 

§7. General Suggestions 

In most of the oral work, the pupils will 
be found weak in sustained oral discourse. 
They seem to need, or to be accustomed to 
continual prompting by the teacher. They 
give partial answers, and expect the rest to 
be filled in by the listener. The use of ^and' 
may be overprominent. When a written test 

224 



CONTENT SUBJECTS 

is given in history or geography, the pupils 
do not consider so much the language which 
they use as the accuracy of the facts given. 
As a result the English is usually vile. 
Papers which call for written expression 
should be marked not only on the correct- 
ness of the content, but also on the written 
expression. A general, serial rating may be 
given, as, A, B, C, or D, 

In oral testing, a call for hands may be 
sufficient to indicate to what extent the 
pupils are able to answer. Several oral ques- 
tions may be given, and the pupils required 
to write the answers on a small sheet of 
paper. Correction is then made as in the 
usual marking of written work. In a written 
examination, the work may be all of the 
same kind, as, knowledge of recognition, or 
of recall, etc., or it may contain a mixture 
of the three varieties. Three separate tests, 
each rated on the basis of 100, may be neces- 
sary to rate the knowledge of the pupils in 
recognition, recall, and reconstruction. 

225 



V 

RESULTS OF DISCIPLINE 



IX 

RESULTS OP DISCIPLINE 
§1. Personnel 

Checking up the personal neatness and 
cleanliness of the pupils is done in much the 
same manner as is the daily inspection of 
hands, clothing, etc. The children place out- 
stretched hands upon the desks, and a rapid 
count is made of dirty hands and finger nails. 
Peet are then placed in the aisles for inspec- 
tion of shined and unshined shoes. The 
number of pupils who have hair uncombed, 
and the number of girls whose hair is not 
properly arranged are counted. Purther 
inspection will note the clothing of the chil- 
dren and its condition, as, buttons off jack- 
ets, waists without collar or tie, absence of 
hair ribbon, etc. A rating can be given on 
each of these points, the attendance of the 

229 



TEACHING EFFICIENCY 

pupils being taken as a basis. The excel- 
lencies to be considered in an inspection of 
the personnel of the pupils are the follow- 
ing: 

Personnel of the pupils 100 

Hands 20 

Face 20 

Hair 20 

Shoes 20 

Clothes 20 

A little investigation of the personal 
habits of the children will show some pecu- 
liar conditions. Pupils of 10, 11, or 12 years 
of age may confess that they have never 
combed their hair as long as they have lived. 
Teachers have voluntarily gone to the homes 
of their wards and in some cases have com- 
pelled the parents to stop the practice of 
sewing up their children in one or more 
undershirts to protect them from the cold; 
the aforesaid undershirts remaining un- 
changed on the children throughout the win- 
ter. If the pupils are too poor, there may 

230 



RESULTS OF DISCIPLINE 

be a class committee to look after collection 
of clothes, etc. Such material as soap, paper 
toweling, (newspaper serves the purpose), 
blacking box, etc., will do much to improve 
the personnel of the pupils. 

§2, Material 

Material of the children may be checked 
up in the same manner. If books are to be 
inspected, some book in constant use, as, 
reader or geography, is selected. Books are 
placed on the desks, and the outside is noted, 
as, covered or uncovered. The inside of the 
book is then looked at, advisedly some page 
that has been read, or some map in constant 
use. A count is made of books which are 
marked, etc., as by tracing of maps, scrib- 
bling, pictures, etc. Material in other sub- 
jects, as, shop w^ork, sewing, etc., may be 
similarly examined. In such instances, the 
external condition is noted, as, of covering, 
envelope, oiling, freedom from rust, etc.; 

231 



TEACHING EFFICIENCY 

and the general condition of the objects 
checked up, as, lack of waste, fitness for use, 
order, etc. 

Written papers, drawings, note books, 
etc., are next in order. Some specific aspect 
should be made the point in the inspection, 
as, accuracy of the text, cleanliness and free- 
dom from blots or dirt, general appearance, 
and the like. If the books, etc., show no 
indication that the teacher has looked at 
them and marked them in some manner, this 
should be noted. 

Pencils, pens, pencil bags, ink, etc., re- 
quire constant looking after. Pupils are 
more or less careless in these particulars, 
and weak discipline shows itself, in one way, 
when many pupils are badl}^ provided with 
pencils, etc., and when there is a general lack 
of order and system in their care. 

A final consideration on the material side 
is the general condition of the pupils' desks, 
floor, etc., and, if necessary, of the teacher's 
closet. After the pupils have placed hats, 

232 



RESULTS OF DISCIPLINE 

books, etc., out of the desk boxes, a rapid 
count of desks with dirt under them or in 
them can be made. 

The different points included under the 
head of material are : 

Material of the children 100 

Books, etc., outside 20 

Books, etc., inside 20 

Blank books, papers, etc. 20 

Ink, pencils, pens, etc. 20 

Floor, desks, closets, etc. 20 

As a basis for the ratings given, the attend • 
ance of the class is taken, and deficiencies 
are calculated and deducted from the total 
of 20 in each merit. 

It is surprising what demoralization re- 
sults when there is no systematic attention 
to the details above enumerated. Geograph- 
ies may be marked by tracings of m.aps, etc., 
pages may be torn from arithmetics or 
grammars, or remarks of questionable ethi- 
cal import may be inscribed on the margins. 

233 



TEACHING EFFICIENCY 

Home work books and written note books 
will usually show rapid deterioration to- 
wards the end. Dirty floor, missing ink- 
wells, loss of pencils, rulers, scissors, etc., 
are the additional burdens which a teacher 
\Nrill create for herself by neglecting the 
material aspects of discipline. All these 
deficiencies will be in great part avoided by 
systematic inspection and checking up. 

§5. Routine 

Routine includes such results of discipline 
as should be more or less automatic. Things 
should go on of themselves, as it were, with- 
out continued exhortation and instruction. 
The details to which routine should apply 
are, heating, lighting and ventilation, pass- 
ing of material, entrance and dismissal of 
pupils, and absence and lateness. 

Ventilation, etc., can be attended to by 
the pupils. Windows may be found closed, 
slightly open at the top (or bottom), wide 
open at the top (or bottom), or properly 

234 



RESULTS OF DISCIPLINE 

open at both top and bottom, where auto- 
matic ventilation is not in use. During 
physical exercise and setting up drills, win- 
dows should be opened both at top and bot- 
tom. The above degrees of excellence may 
be rated 5, 10, 15, or 20. If ventilation is 
regulated by some system out of control of 
the teacher, it can be reasonably expected 
that unsatisfactory ventilation be reported 
at the close of the session. Failure to report 
or keep a record may be rated on a basis of 
4, 5, or 10 as the case may be. Improper use 
of shades and control of lighting may be 
checked up in a similar fashion. 

In a class properly disciplined and under 
good control material will usually be passed 
in a systematic and orderly fashion. It may 
be passed by the pupils from the front to 
the rear of the room, by aisles, or across, 
from one side to the other. Pupils who do 
not pass properly may be counted against 
the total number present. If a teacher has 
apparently no system at all, and flutters 

235 



TEACHING EFFICIENCY 

around the room giving out material herself, 
the principal should be charitable, and call 
her attention to her fault by putting a ques- 
tion mark under the proper heading on the 
blank. Persistence of this error should be 
rated 0. Books, rulers, pencils, etc., may be 
distributed and collected as a formal drill. 

Entrance and dismissal are subject to the 
same method of examination. Do the pupils 
keep a good line formation ? Do they pause 
at the corners of hallways, at the door of the 
room, etc. ? Has the leader been carefully 
selected ? Is there a class captain, or presi- 
dent, who can direct the class if necessary? 
Such faults as running, irregular line for- 
mation by some of the pupils, improper 
spacing, hurry in entering the room, etc., 
should be counted up, and given a negative 
value on the basis of the total number of 
pupils present. 

In the case of absence and lateness of 
pupils, a record can be kept each month, and 
the teachers graded in four, five, or ten 

236 



RESULTS OF DISCIPLINE 

divisions on a percentage basis. The highest 
division will receive 20, and the others a pro- 
portionate rating according to the division 
in which they are. 

In summary, routine consists of the fol- 
lowing : 

Routine 100 

Heating, ventilation, etc. 20 

Passing of material 20 

Entrance and dismissal 20 

Absence 20 

Lateness 20 

A number of signs, like the handwriting 
on the wall, indicate upon only a cursory 
inspection, that something is wrong with the 
discipline of the room. If the class is under 
poor control, passing of material may vary 
between omissions to pass, to throwing 
things across the room. Entrance and dis- 
missal then become a shaking of the head 
and a byword among the teachers on the 
floor, and consist chiefly of rushes out of the 

237 



TEACHING EFFICIENCY 

room, or rushes into the room, helter skelter. 
In less deficient form they may be marked 
b^ straggling, lack of orderly line forma- 
tion, or hurried, rapid marching. When 
truants abound, and late pupils regularly 
equal a large part of the class, it is safe to 
infer that the discipline needs tightening. 
It is surprising to note what a difference 
results either for better or for worse when 
a new teacher enters the room. The class 
may, within a day or two, become one noted 
for order, or, contrariwise, it may pass from 
order to anarchy. 

§4. Response 

Psychologists are not agreed as to what 
constitutes a test for attention. In the 
classroom, therefore, it may be impossible 
definitely to determine whether this or that 
pupil is attentive, and fully occupied with 
the work which is being presented. For 
practical, pedagogical purposes, however, it 
is safe to assume that those children are not 



238 



RESULTS OF DISCIPLINE 

paying sufficient attention who are looking 
out of the window, talking with their neigh- 
bors, playing with and looking at objects 
under the desk, etc. So long as a pupil has 
the attitude of attention and fixates ade- 
quately the object, blackboard, teacher, etc., 
he may be counted as attentive. This does 
not necessitate a rigid posture, nor does it 
preclude leaning forward, or the various 
motor diffusions which may manifest them- 
selves by finger or face movements, etc. 

Pupils are sitting properly when their 
feet touch the ground, and when their bodies 
are reasonably erect. Hands should be in 
front of them, and not ^behind backs,' nor 
on top of heads. In written work, the elbows 
should not be too high, nor should the pupils 
bend over the desk or press closely against 
it. A rapid count will tell how many pupils 
are sitting properly and how many are not. 
Correct grouping of the pupils is also a 
desideratum. Effective visualization re- 
quires the pupils to sit the long way of the 

239 



TEACHING EFFICIENCY 

room, to prevent foreshortening of objects, 
and to be within the teacher's line of sight. 
Massing in semicircular form in front of the 
teacher may also be necessary, as in group 
instruction. 

When pupils are standing properly, the 
head, and not the abdomen, is up and for- 
ward. Hands are by the side, not on top of 
desk or in pockets. The basis for rating 
may be the four or five children who have 
stood while reciting during the lesson, or it 
may be the whole number of pupils observed 
during a drill, or called upon to stand for 
setting up exercises. If the pupils are called 
upon to ^show how well they can stand,' they 
are practically told what to do, and no hon- 
est rating can be given. 

Individual response of pupils can be meas- 
ured in the classroom and out of it, in fact, 
wherever the pupils may be met. Training 
leaves its mark and can always be told. Lack 
of such training and response is evident 
when the teacher is continually reporting 

240 



RESULTS OF DISCIPLINE 

pupils for misbehavior, and seems unable to 
control them. Disorder in the room, as, per- 
sistent talking, changing seats without per- 
mission, walking around the room to attract 
attention, etc., indicates a similar lack of 
individual response on the part of the pupils. 
Class response, as a whole, is a somewhat 
different result from individual response, 
and calls for another type of discipline. 
Class response is not made up of the sum of 
individual responses, as such. It is an in- 
tegral whole, and calls for unit action. It 
is manifested in satisfactory drills, singing, 
group work, and the like. It differs from 
routine, in that directions are necessary 
from time to time. Straggling reaction, in- 
tentional interference by one or more pupils, 
weakness in rhythmic movements, etc., count 
against this merit. A rating may be given 
on a numerical basis, the number of pupils 
interfering being counted out and valued on 
the basis of class attendance; or a general 
estimate may be made. In the latter case 

241 



TEACHING EFFICIENCY 

the teachers are grouped in four or five 
divisions, according to the number of times 
the class has been disorderly while in the 
teacher's hands, or has failed to respond as 
shown by inspections, complaints, or calls 
for help. 

The excellencies which constitute response 
of pupils in general, are the following : 



Response 


100 


Attention 


20 


Sitting 


20 


Standing 


20 


Individual 


20 


Class 


20 



Lack of attention is a common complaint, 
even with the classes of experienced teach- 
ers. A teacher makes matters only worse by 
constantly asking for the attention of pupils, 
or by nagging. It may be that a drill is 
needed, with such exercises as breathing, 
stretching, etc. It often happens that a 
teacher runs over the time assigned for the 

242 



RESULTS OF DISCIPLINE 

subject, and becomes a bore to the children. 
There may be no proper use of incentives, 
questioning, etc. The pupils, like the pris- 
oners in cells who can not escape, may be 
compelled to listen to the talk of the teacher, 
when they are longing for a chance to talk, 
or work, or do something. Wliere most of 
the pupils show little attention, it is safe to 
assume that the lesson is a failure. 

Sitting and standing of pupils often is 
neglected by some teachers. Desks may be 
too high. Pupils may be allowed to stand 
with hands in pockets, or holding on to desk 
tops. The old practice of having the chil- 
dren sit with their hands behind their backs 
or placed on top of their heads may be found. 
Where there is lack of response, it may be 
due to a weak, flabby manner of the teacher, 
and an insipid, droning manner in giving 
commands. Pupils like snap and vigor, and 
will respond to it. 



243 



TEACHING EFFICIENCY 

§5, Class Activities 

A number of simple class activities can be 
expected of the teacher, and will do much to 
create good class spirit, and easy, natural 
discipline. Classroom decoration, as a re- 
sult of the efforts of both pupils and teacher, 
is one of these. Statues, framed pictures, 
charts, work done by the pupils, contribu- 
tions, etc., can be so arranged within the 
room as to make it attractive and pleasant. 
Quantity alone is not the sole requisite. 
There must also be considered the grouping, 
color, form, and subject harmony, appropri- 
ateness, and placing. The different rooms 
in the school can be arranged in a series of 
4, 5 or 10 grades according to their excel- 
lence, and a rating given on the basis of 20. 

Interclass exercises differ from interclass 
games in that they are concerned more with 
the different grade subjects, history, lan- 
guage, spelling, arithmetic, etc., and are 
more academic in character. All written 
work of any kind can be passed from one 

244 



RESULTS OF DISCIPLINE 

class to another, of about the same grade, for 
correction, imitation, answer, etc. So, too, 
one class can visit another to see the room 
decorations, to hear the oral work, to observe 
a drill, and so on. An interchange of cour- 
tesies, as it were, can take place. The best 
pupils, at times, might be allowed to go to 
another class to show their work, recite, etc. 
It will be found that some teachers have a 
program of interclass exercises nicely pre- 
pared, well integrated with their work, and 
faithfully carried out. At the other extreme 
will be found those who have not tried any- 
thing as yet, who may, perhaps, not believe 
in it, or who do not quite know what it is all 
about. The classes can be arranged in a 
series between these two extremes, and a 
value given according as they fit in one of 
four or five divisions. 

Interclass games can be treated in a simi- 
lar manner. Competitive athletics, gyimias- 
tics, dancing, games of any sort, are here 
included. They may call for the services 

245 



TEACHING EFFICIENCY 

of teachers after sessions, and they necessi- 
tate program and preparation. A final tour- 
nament among several classes may be held. 
Interclass games are sometimes correlated 
with the other class activities, as in the case 
of excursions, or individual studies of pu- 
pils. When a class is taken out on an excur- 
sion, it may meet another class, and co- 
operate with it in its work, games, and exer- 
cises. Similarly, in organizing interclass 
games, an appeal may be made to some of the 
pupils, by assigning them posts in the game, 
or parts in the play. 

A promised excursion to the country, to 
a museum, historic place, park, etc., usually 
sets the children wild with excitement and 
pleasure, especially in crowded sections of 
the city where they have little opportunity 
to get out. In such a case a regular program 
should be arranged and details of the fol- 
lowing nature recorded: (1) permissions 
from the parents allowing the children to 
go ; (2) provision for such pupils as remain; 

246 



RESULTS OF DISCIPLINE 

(3) the route to be taken; (4) the number 
taken, and the number returned; (5) the 
number of accidents, if any; (6) the pro- 
gram, giving exercises, games, points to be 
noted, etc. A record of each excursion, with 
the above data, properly dated, should be 
kept by the class teacher, and a copy filed 
in the office of the school. A class club may 
also be organized. Meetings are held, recep- 
tions are given, parents are invited, a class 
* party' is arranged, and a good social spirit 
is developed. In rating teachers in this par- 
ticular, the classes may be arranged in a 
series, and grouped in four or five divisions. 
Those in the first division get 20 credits out 
of 20, those in the second get 15, and so on. 

Finally some credit is due the teacher who 
makes a special study of a pupil who has a 
bad name, who is truant, or reputed to be 
incorrigible. How has she handled such a 
case? What has she done m adapting the 
work to the pupil, in helping him individu- 
ally, in cooperating with his parents, in visit- 

247 



TEACHING EFFICIENCY 

ing his home, and so on ? What use has she 
made of manual work, or dramatics, of occu- 
pations which call for responsibility, etc.? 
Has she spoken to him alone, and used every 
kind of personal appeal ? With one teacher, 
such a pupil seems no different from the 
others, and mil respond naturally and cheer- 
fully. With another teacher trouble starts 
as soon as the pupil is in the room, or shortly 
after he enters. Grading of teachers and 
rating will follow the general scheme out- 
lined in the preceding paragraph. 

The various class activities with their 
value is given below : 

Class activities 100 

Classroom decoration 20 

Interclass exercises 20 

Interclass games 20 

Excursions, clubs, etc. 20 

Individual studies of pupils 20 

In the matter of class activities some de- 



iciencies and dangers are to be noted. Many 

248 



RESULTS OF DISCIPLINE 

teachers decorate the room in a somewhat 
aimless fashion. The growth is one of accre- 
tion, as it were. A new picture or chart 
appears, and it is placed in the first empty 
space that presents itself. As a result, there 
will be a mass of room decoration, of which 
the greater part detracts from the appear- 
ance of the room because it is either in 
excess, or not properly placed. One should 
avoid making of the room a curiosity shop. 
Planning and care are necessary. 

When an excursion or a class ^ party' has 
been arranged for, it is necessary to keep the 
children within bounds. There is usually 
the danger that, in the excitement, disorder 
results, and other classes are interfered 
with. No children should be allowed to roam 
about the halls, pay ^friendly visits' to other 
classes, or to show themselves outside of the 
classroom. When the class moves, it should 
move as a body, without stragglers of any 
kind. 



249 



TEACHING EFFICIENCY 

§^. Social Morality 

It is evident that in the results of discip- 
line as enumerated above, there is present 
ethical training of a high order. Cleanli- 
ness, hygienic and external, is necessary if 
the personnel of the children is to reach a 
satisfactory standard. Material and its care 
involve such virtues as system, order, neat- 
ness, economy, service, and work. Routine 
demands such good habits as obedience, 
regularity, cooperation, and the like, while 
response necessitates courtesy, respect, self- 
control, docility, and so on. In the different 
class activities there is opportunity for 
social contact, intercourse, and practice. 

Results in instruction also carry with 
them, by necessity, considerable ethical 
training. Obedience is necessary to secure 
such reaction as is indispensable to good 
work. Neatness, cleanliness, order, system, 
and arrangement receive a value in all of 
the subjects. Good habits of thought are 
provided for in the organization of the 

250 



RESULTS OF DISCIPLINE 

material, and in problem work and recon- 
structive exercises. Initiative is similarly 
encouraged, and individual control is stimu- 
lated in the requirements which call for 
knowledge of control. Regularity, industry, 
and persistence are essential to progress iu 
any subject.. The different forms of expres- 
sion which are required, allow for such in- 
dividual differences as the pupils may pos- 
sess, and tend to develop individual interests 
among the children. Honesty, truthfulness, 
obedience, respect, and effort are a sine qua 
7ion in the teaching process, if satisfactory 
results are to be reached. So the story runs. 
Among many, however, there is a demand 
for more specific instruction in ethics, and 
for a conscious, systematic treatment of 
social morality. Just as the various school 
subjects undergo differentiation in the 
grades, so, it is held, social morality should 
become essential rather than incidental in 
the teaching process. Systematic guidance 
by topics is asked for, with marks, check- 

251 



TEACHING EFFICIENCY 

ing up, etc., as in the ease of arithmetic or 
history. 

A convenient list of topics and headings 
under which the different aspects of social 
morality may be grouped are the following : 

Conventional courtesy 

Use of such expressions^ as, Please, 
Thank you, Excuse me, Yes sir, Yes 
ma'am, etc. 

Good breeding, and absence of rough- 
ness, censoriousness, raillery, con- 
tradiction, captiousness, excess of 
ceremony, interruption, and dispute 
(See Locke, Some Th, Con, Ed,) 

Social duties 
Courtesy and consideration 
Toleration and reasonableness 
Respect and reverence 
Obedience and docility 
Self-reliance and self-control 
Social service and cooperation 

252 



RESULTS OF DISCIPLINE 

School conduct 

In the school building 
Outside of the school huilding 
In the classroom 
(Results of discipline, in part) 

Civic obligations 
Absolute rights 
Of person 
Of property 

Obligatory rights 
Of contract 
Of domestic relations 

Remedial rights 

, Private wrongs 

Assault and battery 
Defamation, libel, slander 
Fraud and oppression 
Trespass and conversion 
Nuisance 
Negligence 

253 



TEACHING EFFICIENCY 
Public wrongs 

Treason^ rebellion, resistance, etc. 
Embezzling, bribery, perjury, etc. 
Smuggling, usury, etc. 
Adulteration, vagabondage, nuisance, 

etc. 
Assault, battery, kidnapping, etc. 
Larceny, robbery, forgery, etc. 

Many of these topics are treated incidentally 
in subjects like history and civics, but the 
legal aspects are not presented specifically 
and with sufficient emphasis. 

As in the case of knowledge, so with social 
morality, three grades of reaction can be 
demanded. The pupils may be told or shown 
an instance, and asked to tell what it repre- 
sents, what specific virtue or moral it car- 
ries, or simply, whether it is good or bad, 
legal or illegal, satisfactory or unsatisfac- 
tory. A higher type of reaction is necessary 
if the children are asked to recite on a given 
topic, answer questions at length, tell illus- 

254 



RESULTS OF DISCIPLINE 

trative stories or incidents, etc., just as 
they do in history, geography, or grammar. 
Finally, complete reaction as in dramatiza- 
tion or in actual behavior may be required, 
or a discussion with reasons, etc., may be 
asked. The three types of reaction are there- 
fore, (1) recognition^ (2) recall, and (3) con- 
trol or reconstruction. 

For example, one may ask the class to dis- 
tinguish between the correctness or the in- 
correctness of the forms. Give me, and 
Please give me. They may be required to 
make requests for different objects. Or one 
may give help to a pupil, incidentally, and 
see whether he will respond with a. Thank 
you. The class may be tested on the propo- 
sition so common among the children, Find- 
ings is keepings. Explanations, reasons, and 
a discussion may be called for. They may 
be asked to explain and discuss the maxim, 
Honesty is the best policy. Specific instances 
may be put before the class for recognition 
as to their ethical import, for discussion, 

255 



TEACHING EFFICIENCY 

imitation, etc. Current events, history, and 
biography afford abundant material for 
such a purpose. Dramatization is possible 
in many cases to show types of social be- 
havior which should be imitated. 



256 



YI 
APPENDICES 



APPENDIX A 

THREE RULES OF INSPECTION 

Whether it is the teacher who is testing pupils, 
the principal who is inspecting teachers, or the 
superintendent who is examining a school, the fol- 
lowing three rules should be followed, rigidly and 
without exception: 

Rule one: Whatever standards and tests are 

APPLIED should BE DEFINITE AND KNOWN IN ADVANCE 
BY THE INDIVIDUALS WHO ARE TO BE EXAMINED. 

It is very easy to evade this rule by assuming that 
the teacher should know her work and should be 
able to meet any tests given. But inexperienced 
teachers will neglect some phases of the teaching 
process, while older ones may follow narrow but 
well-grooved paths. Moreover, (whisper it softly), 
there is always the possibility that the examining 
official may have unique standards which will not 
bear the cool air and dry light of reason, may, in 
fact, know less than the one whom he is inspecting. 
If the teacher is instructed in the details which are 
to be looked for, right or wrong, she can at least 
follow instructions, and meet the examiner half way. 
Then there are always differences due to varying 



259 



TEACHING EFFICIENCY 

emphasis on one or the other phase of the teaching 
process. If stress is to be laid on oral or other work, 
the teacher should know of it, lest she unconsciously 
offend by spending too much time on written or 
motor appeals. If a superior official really has 
standards, these should be definitely stated, and 
given to the teachers concerned. 

So much is usually granted. But in the matter 
of tests and examinations, it is too often the custom 
to * spring' a set of questions upon the teacher, and 
to ask her to give them to the class, without consult- 
ing her about what she has done, or cooperating with 
her in the least. Just what is gained by such a pro- 
cess, it is hard to determine. If the examiner wants 
to know what the teacher has taught, he can find out 
by asking her, or by looking at her plan book. If he 
wants to find out the results of the teacher's instruc- 
tion, any tests given should correspond with such 
instruction, and this is possible only when the teacher 
is consulted in the matter. If the supervising official 
wishes to have types of a special kind taught, it 
seems only fair that such types should be given to 
the teacher in advance. "Whatever be the case, there 
should be some cooperation between the inspecting 
official and the teachers supervised by him. 

It is held that if type problems or outlines are 
given to the teacher, she will work along narrow 
lines and will present only individual cases to the 
children. But types and outlines can be made suffi- 
ciently inclusive to cover any field in any subject. 



260 



THREE RULES OF INSPECTION 

And when a teacher is not taken into confidence nor 
allowed to cooperate, a condition is created which 
results in a process more narrowing than any which 
could be produced by the setting of types and out- 
lines. In fact, when arbitrary and unrelated exami- 
nations are given by the supervising official, the 
teacher quietly collects the few questions given at 
different times, studies the peculiarities of the ex- 
aminer, (who is but one and therefore narrow), and 
then does little more than drive the pupils along the 
lines unconsciously laid by the examiner. He natu- 
rallj^ finds 'improvement,' and smugly reports the 
progress made under his supervision. And with each 
new supervisor the process may be repeated. 

Even if it be granted that such a thing as general 
* power' can be developed and tested, the limits 
within which such power is to operate can be clearly 
indicated in advance. Usually such 'power' consists 
in the knowledge of two or three tricks in number 
which can be readily memorized, and in the cram- 
ming of a set response to a form of question which is 
considered by the examiner as a sure test of ' power. ' ^ 



i There seems to be no good reason why courses of study 
should not contain, not only directions on method, but se- 
quence and organization of subject matter, and definite 
types and outlines. The usual course of study is arranged 
logically, may be followed, and so may automatically ensure 
poor instruction. See the excellent analysis of different 
courses of study in arithmetic, in A Brief Course in the 
Teaching Process, by G. D. Strayer, Ch. XVIII, 

261 



TEACHING EFFICIENCY 

When a supervisor neither assists nor encourages 
the teachers, and fails to get their respect and co- 
operation by such means, as a last resort, he has the 
examination which he can use like a lash. It is a 
petty way to arouse a stir which is mistaken for 
increased efficiency, and to create a feeling which 
may wrongly be considered respect or reverence, but 
which is neither the one nor the other. The feeling 
aroused is much akin to the sense of disgust and 
unrest which is produced in one, when one is aware 
that there is a snake loose, nearby. One knows not 
what is to follow, nor what is to be expected. It is 
well known, that, when an examination is given 
without cooperation with the ones to be tested, the 
questions can be 'jockeyed' so as to produce practi- 
cally any result, from 5 or 10% upwards. And it is 
equally well known that the results of examinations 
can be used as a kind of ' evidence, ' if, as the politi- 
cians say, it is necessary 'to get' the teacher. Varia- 
tions within the course of study are infinite, and, 
when subject to the whim of an irresponsible ex- 
aminer, are capable of producing any percentage 
results. 

Rule two : Any written report, inspection, etc., 

USED officially AND BEARING THE TEACHER 's NAME, 
SHOULD BE GIVEN IN DUPLICATE TO THE TEACHER CON- 
CERNED. 

This rule is followed to a great extent by many 
principals and superintendents, and is gradually re- 
ceiving wider recognition. It is now common for 

262 



THREE RULES OF INSPECTION 

the supervising official to write a criticism, of a 
teacher 's lesson and to leave a copy with the teacher. 
It is, however, not so common to leave with the 
teacher a copy of any report which is regarded as 
'confidential' in the higher circles. But the rule 
should hold without exception. Everything con- 
nected with the teacher 's record should be given to 
her in duplicate. 

It is seen that the first rule is closely related to 
the second. If the teacher has not received standards 
and types as a guide, a written report may mean 
little to her, for it may be written from a different 
viewpoint each time. It is this inconsistency which 
makes of supervision such a bugbear — usually an 
actual hindrance to classroom work. The inspecting 
official may have a set — and a wrong set — of which 
the teacher is not aware. The written suggestion 
operates then like a damper; and supervision, in- 
stead of aiding and encouraging the teacher, de- 
presses her and hangs like a yellow cloud over her 
work. 

Rule three : Any report which may be ques- 
tioned, SHOULD be supported BY FACTS — BY PRIMARY 

EVIDENCE. Without the data upon which it is 

BASED, IT SHOULD BE THROWN OUT WITHOUT THE LEAST 
CONSIDERATION. 

When reports upon classroom work are written 
from wrong points of view, or upon slight and in- 
sufficient data, they mean practically nothing more 
than the whim or opinion of a biased or incompetent 



TEACHING EFFICIENCY 

official. It is easily conceivable that a sodden Phari- 
see may report on his own efficiency and fulness of 
heart, and upon the weakness and inefficiency of the 
teacher, when the facts might reverse the positions 
stated in the report. What is means by ' unsatisfac- 
tory ' service ? How large a share in the school work 
is taken up by the weaknesses noted? How often 
have such weaknesses occurred? Are they in fact 
real weaknesses? When, for example, the facts are 
simply, ' some paper on the floor, ' ' two or three boys 
talking,' 'argument with the teacher,' etc., during 
the single visit of the examiner, one questions the 
validity of any report supported solely by the opinion 
of the supervising official. And the judgments of 
the average supervising official can not, in the wild- 
est flights of the imagination, be regarded as expert 
testimony. 

It is expected, in the teacher-pupil relation, that 
the teacher show good cause for rating a pupil * un- 
satisfactory, ' such cause including, evidence of help 
given, of poor work done by the pupil, of notice to 
parents, etc. So, too, in the case of the principal- 
teacher relation, no teacher should be reported upon 
adversely, unless evidence is presented, (1) that 
standards and types have been outlined for her; (2) 
that aid and encouragement have been given; (3) 
that repeated inspections have been made; and (4) 
that any examination given has been based upon 
work done by the teacher as outlined in her plan or 
progress book. Cooperation all along the line should 
be the aim in view. 

264 



APPENDIX B 

A CASE IN POINT 

The following statements resulted from a report 
made by a principal against a teacher. The teacher 
appealed. It is to be noted that no real evidence is 
presented to support any of the judgments given by 
either side. As evidence, they are worthless. The 
exhibits speak for themselves. 

Exhibit A 

Appeal of the teacher, A. B. C. 

Q. E. D., Esq., Superintendent. 
Dear Sir: 

Herewith I respectfully enclose a statement of my 
case which I trust you will be kind enough to recon- 
sider in view of the circumstances. I have the honor 

to be, 

Yours respectfully, 

A. B. C, Teacher. 

To Q. E. D., Esq., Superintendent. 
Dear Sir : 

With regard to the non-renewal of my License, I 
respectfully submit the following statement which con- 
tains good reasons why I was not treated justly. 



265 



TEACHING EFFICIENCY 

At 10 o'clock, A. M., Friday, September — , 19 — , 
Mr. X. Y. Z., the Principal, called me from my class- 
room, told me that my License was not renewed, and 
that I should leave at once. This information came 
to me as a great surprise as I was tacitly allowed by 
the Principal to assume that my work for the past 
year was quite satisfactory. On June — , 19 — , I com- 
pleted two years in the service of the Board, during 
which I lost no time and was never late nor unpunc- 
tual. During the two years or four terms, I was never 
told by the Principal how he rated me or what my 
marks were. And having asked him how he marked 
me for the fall term, 19 — , he evaded the question by 
a sarcastic piece of wit at my expense. Now the lack 
of this information was quite unfair to me because I 
naturally assumed that my work was meritorious. 
The fact of heing ignorant of their ratings may be cor- 
roborated by other teachers in respect to themselves. 

With regard to the Data I wish to make and declare 
the following statement as true : 

During the first two terms (19 — , ), the Prin- 
cipal, Mr. X. Y. Z., never once came to my classroom 
to give a lesson, to hear a lesson given hy me, or to 
make any suggestions for a change or improvement in 
my class instruction ; nor did he help me by either giv- 
ing or recommending any preferable text-books, but 
his invariable reply to any question asked by me was : 
''I have no time." For this period he did not ask for 
nor examine any of the written work of my classes ; in 
fact the only purpose for which he ever came to my 



266 



A CASE IN POINT 

classroom was to find something from my Roll Book, 
such as the figures for the 3,Ionthly attendances. Tak- 
ing the first term of my second year into consideration 
as regards Discipline, he personally commended me 
once or twice casually when passing the classroom 
door. But in respect to Instruction, he never stopped 
in my classroom long enough to knoiv what it ivas like 
or what the residts of it luere. During the second 
term of my second year I had a class of 48 Boys and as 
before he personally approved of my Discipline (He 
could see that in passing my classroom door), but with 
regard to class instruction, he did not come to my 
classroom until, I think, the third-last day of the term, 
when the following was the procedure : 

The Principal came to my classroom at 15 minutes 
before closing time. I was having a reading lesson 
then. He appeared to be excited, nervous, and in a 
hurry. He told me to ask the boys a few general ques- 
tions in the class History, which I did. He then re- 
peated his question as to Geography and Elementary 
Science. I gave the boys a few questions in each 
subject. This occupied altogether about seven min- 
xites. He then went away and came back excited and 
complaining about all his work, etc. It was about 
3.10 o'clock. He asked me to show him the written 
work of the term. I gave it to him. It consisted of 
Writing copies. Compositions, Dictations, Transcrip- 
tions, and Drawings. He gave a cursory glance over 
a few pieces of the work, occupying, I judge, about 
half a minute, during which time he complained of all 



267 



TEACHING EFFICIENCY 

his work. Then he showed a report sheet on which he 
said he should answer questions regarding me. He 
said, ' ' How will I answer this question ? ' How do you 
use apperception?' " to which I replied, "That's for 
you to answer. ' ' He said, ' ' How do you expect me to 
answer? I am on the verge of nervous breakdown 
from want of sleep." He then left my classroom say- 
ing that the report should be sent by him to Mr. Q. E. 
D. on that afternoon, the latest. 

If you think I have been treated fairly, I will re- 
spectfully submit to your decision; but if you think 
I have not, I ask for a renewal of License and a trans- 
fer to another School. 

Respectfully yours, 

A. B. C, Teacher. 

Sworn before me this — day of 

September, 19 — , 

M. N. 0., Notary Public. 

Exhibit B 

Letter of lawyer to principal. 

Mr. X. Y. Z., Principal. 
My Dear Sir : 

Will you kindly let me know what assistance and 
inspection was given to the work of A. B. C, who 
was for two years teaching under a temporary license 
under you? Kindly indicate specifically the number 
( ?) and amount of time given to assisting him in his 
work, examination of his work by attendance and 



268 



A CASE IN POINT 

observation in his classroom, and observation of Ms 
discipline. He has called upon me and feels that an 
injustice has been done him by reason of the failure 
to renew his license for the third year. I have his 
story, but want to hear from you before doing any- 
thing. 

Thanking you in advance I am, 

Very truly yours, 

L. L. B., Lawyer. 

Exhibit C 

Reply of Principal, X. Y. Z. 

Dr. Q. E. D., Superintendent, 
Dear Sir : 

I have read the statement of Mr. A. B. C. in refer- 
ence to non-renewal of his license. I notified Mr. A. 
B. C. that his license had not been renewed as soon 
as I received word from you to that effect. I did not 
evade Mr. A. B. C.'s request as to his rating, and have 
no recollection of making sarcastic remarks to him 
about the matter. Mr. A. B. C. in his communication 
gives the impression that his discipline was very good. 
In point of fact, until about the middle of last term his 
discipline was very poor; frequently the entire class 
was in an unproar, while he stood before them helpless 
and apparently dazed. A number of times I requested 
him to give me the names of the worst boys ; he almost 
invariably declined, sometimes saying, '^Ah! Well! 
What is the use ! ' ' From statements made to me by 



269 



TEACHING EFFICIENCY 

parents it looked as though at times he resorted to 
violent means to maintain discipline. I allowed the 
parents to see him, and as no formal complaints were 
made, the matter rested. Finally, and this occurred 
the early part of last term, I called him out of his 
room, and told him that if a parent again came, I 
would prefer charges against him to the local school 
board. I may have commended his class when they 
were behaving in order to encourage him; until last 
term his rating in discipline was C, and it was not 
until June of this year that I gave him for the first 
time the rating B, straining a point to do so. In my 
report to you, under heading, 'Control of Class,' I 
said, "Fair to good. There has been considerable 
improvement. ' ' 

The statement in the matter of my report to you as 
to his use of apperception, correlation, etc., is also very 
misleading. In my report on his case made to you in 
June, I call your attention especially to what I said 
in answer to the different headings. Is it likely that 
I obtained these answers from him? I have been in 
Mr. A. B. C.'s room many times and he knew 
that I was not satisfied with his work. At 
the formal examination I gave his class towards 
the end of the term I spent a much longer 
time in his room than would appear from his state- 
ment, in order to make sure that I would do him no 
injustice. The account of what occurred, of the re- 
marks I made, is ridiculous and intended to excite 
prejudice. 



270 



A CASE IN POINT 

I have not, during the past year, been able to spend 
the time in his room that would have been desirable 
in his case, owing to conditions in my school. There 
are in the school a number of teachers who began 
teaching with me, among them, four young men, who 
are doing excellent work. Mr. A. B. C. claimed to 
have had seven or eight years' experience, three of 

them in the schools of , and three in the schools 

of , before he was appointed to this school. Is 

it not strange that he needed all the extra help, and 
that in his case the principal of the school was to blame 
because he did not succeed ? The teacher has not done 
well because, in the first place, he is uncouth and awk- 
ward — as I said in my report to you, "His ways 

impress boys as strange " and the pupils do not 

have the feeling of respect which the teacher should 
inspire. Besides this, he is not only a little slow to 
follow instructions, but he does not seem to care to 
follow them. A number of times I have found fault 
with him in respect to the manner in which he 
attended to his work while on duty in the yard or 
street, at dismissal or during recess. He did not 
attend to the work of classroom instruction with that 
enthusiasm and zeal that the earnest teacher should 
have, but he was mechanical, easy-going, and indif- 
ferent. 

Respectfully, 

X. Y. Z., Principal. 



271 



APPENDIX C 
ELLIOTT SCHEME OF MEASUREMENT. 

OUTLINE 

OF 

Tentative Scheme for the 

Measurement of Teaching 

Efficiency 

EDWARD G. ELLIOTT 

University of Wisconsin 



PRESENTED TO THE 

SECOND ANNUAL STATE CONVENTION 

OF CITY SUPERINTENDENTS 

OCT. 7 AND 8, 1910 



HELD UNDER DIRECTION OF 

G. P. GARY 

State Superintendent of Public Instruction 



272 



Tentative Scheme for Measurement of 
Teaching Efficiency 



NOTE. — ^Criticisms and suggestions of the scheme will be ap- 
preciated, and should be sent to Edward C. Elliott, University of 
Wisconsin, Madison. 



City School 

Teacher Grade 

No. of Pupils 

Boys Date 

Girls 

Special conditions 



Room. 

Subject — 



GENERAL INSTRUCTIONS. 

Deduct from possible 4; very slight V2', slight 1; marked 2; very 
marked iVz', extreme 3i/^. (Possible 8 or 
12, in same proportion.) 

Deduct from possible 2; very slight 1^4; slight V2', marked 1; very 
marked l^/^; extreme 1%. 

Minimum standard for approval; according to the exigencies of the 

school system. 



TEACHING EFFICIENCY— 100 Points. 



Sug- 
gested 
values 



Defi- 
cien- 
cies 



Deter- 
mined 
values 



PHYSICAL EFFICIENCY— 12 points 

1. Impressions — general 

2. Health — general 

3. Voice 

4. Habits — personal 

5. Energy 

6. Endurance 

273 



(12) 
2 
2 
2 
2 
2 
2 



TEACHING EFFICIENCY 



TEACHING EFFICIENCY— 100 Points. 



Sug- 
gested 
valuers 



Defi- 
cien- 
cies 



II. MORAL— NATIVE EFFICIENCY— 14 points 

1. Self control 

2. Optimism — enthusiasm 

3. Sympathy — tact 

4. Industry — earnestness 

5. Adaptability 

6. Sense of humor 

7. Judicial mindedness 

III. ADMINISTRATIVE EFFICIENCY— 10 points 

1. Initiative 

2. Promptness and accuracy 

3. Executive capacity 

4. Economy (time, property) 

5. Co-operation (associates and superiors) 

IV. DYNAMIC EFFICIENCY— 24 points 

1. Preparation 

Including: 

a. Intellectual capacity. 

b. Academic education. 

c. Professional training. 

2. Professional attitudes and interest 

3. Human nature attitudes and interest 

(Appreciation of values — intellectual, 
social and moral in child life) .... 

4. Instructional skill 

Including: 

a. Attention and interest of pupils. 

b. Formality vs. vitality of instruc- 

tion. 

c. Motor vs. verbal methods. 

d. Application of the technique of 

teaching; organization and 
presentation of subject matter; 
the recitation as artistic prod- 
uct. 

e. Application of the technique of 

living; participation and con- 
tribution of pupils; the recita- 
tion as a democratic activity. 

f. The tools and machinery of in- 

struction; effective adaptation. 

g. Assignment of work 

5. Governmental and directive skill. 

(discipline) 

274 



(14) I 
2 I 
2 
2 
2 
2 
2 
2 



12 



(10) 
2 
2 
2 
2 
2 

(24) 
4 



ELLIOTT SCHEME 



TEACHING EFFICIENCY— 700 Points. 



gested 
values 



Den- 
cien- 
cies 



Deter- 
miced 
values 



Y. PROJECTED EFFICIENCY— 6 points 

1. Continuing preparation 

a. Daily; b. Weekly; c. Annual 

2. The school program 

3. Increase of professional equipment 

(professional reading and study; 
travel) 

vl. ACHIEVED EFFICIENCY— 24 points 

1. Achievement. 

a. Illustrative results 

b. Examinations; success and at- 

tainment of pupils 

2. Stimulation of individuals and com- 

munity 

VII. SOCIAL EFFICIENCY— 10 points 

1. Intra-mural interests 

2. Extra-mural interests. 

a. Cultural and ethical 

b. Civic 

c. School — ^patrons 



(6) 
2 



2 

(24) 

8 

12 

4 

(10) 

2 

2 

2 
4 



PROPOSITIONS 

1. Is it possible to devise, and to apply to the teaching 

process, impersonal, quantitative standards 
v\^hereby the relative worth and efficiency of 
teachers may be determined more justly and 
with greater precision than under the ordinary 
practices of the day ? 

2. Does not the effective organization, administration 

and supervision of public schools require that 
the conditions and results of the teacher's work 
be subjected to measurements of a quantitative 
rather than of a qualitative nature? 

3. Is it possible for the present generation to make any 

reliable and satisfactory conclusions concerning 
the direction and rate of educational progress 
without standards of value resting upon a quan- 
titative basis ? 

275 



APPENDIX D 

SCHEME OF MEASUREMENT BASED ON 
THE OHIO STATE SCHOOL SURVEY 

A. Physical conditions affecting instruction 

1. Does the teacher show in practice knowledge 

of proper heat control and ventilation? 

2. Examples of good and bad practice in this 

respect. 

3. What was the relative humidity of the 

room? 

4. Would you detect foul air by the sense 

of smell? 

5. Does the teacher seat the pupils as well as 

possible under the conditions found ? 

a. No. of seats too large (feet dang- 

ling). 

b. No. of seats too small. 

c= No. of pupils seated in seats of one 
size with desks of another. 

6. Other examples of good and bad practice in 

seating. 

7. Does the teacher show in practice knowl- 

edge of good lighting? 

8. Examples of good and bad practice (Men- 

tion particularly means taken to obviate 
cross lights and to make up for insuffi- 
cient window area). 

B. Personality of teacher (Check V) 

1. Teacher appears to be 

vigorous weak 

poised nervous ■ 



neat slovenly — 

at ease embarrassed- 
Remarks 



276 



OHIO STATE SCHOOL SURVEY 



Days absent on account of own illness since 

September to date ; during 

previous term if teacher taught 

Remarks 



Voice is ( Check V ) 

pleasing 

clear 

low 

Remarks 



harsh — 
indistinct- 
high 



4. In her personal relations with her pupils 
does she appear (Check V) 



to stimulate - 

to win cordial 

co-operation- 

to be 

sympathetic- 
strict 

even 

tempered 

reasonable — 

tolerant 

dignified 

courteous — 
encouraging - 
firm 



tactful 

enthusiastic - 
quick to react- 
quiet 



systematic ■ 
resourceful- 
Remarks — 



to suppress 



to antagonize- 



harsh 
lax — 



irritable 

unreasonable- 
intolerant — 
undignified - 

rude 

nagging 

weak 



blundering 

diffident 

slow to react 
noisy 



disorderly 
dependent 



277 



TEACHING EFFICIENCY 

C. The recitation 

1. Type of lesson (Check V) 

a. Drill lesson 

(1) simple (to make re- 
sponse automatic) 

(2) study (to memorize, e. 

g., a poem) 

(3) review (to fix automatic 

response) 

b. Problem lesson 

(1) recitation (to solve 

problem, material, previously 
given) 

(2) study (to teach how to 

study) 

(3) review (as above, to fix 

and test) 

(4) topic recitation 

c. Appreciation lesson (to develop 

tastes, interests, ideals in art, litera- 
ture, etc.) 

2. Time lost Check (V, and indicate num- 
ber of minutes) 

a. Calling class — — 



b. Dismissing class 

c. Distributing materials 

d. Indistinct speech of teacher 

e. Indistinct speech of pupils- 



f. Unnecessary talking of teacher — 

g. Unnecessary talking of pupils — 
h. Failure to have devices ready 

i. Use of ill-adapted devices 

Remarks 

278 



OHIO STATE SCHOOL SURVEY 

3. No. of pupils in class appearing 

to be interested indifferent- 
energetic lazy 



independent dependent- 

4. No. of pupils asking 

pertinent questions of fact 



relevant thought provoking questions- 
Remarks 

5. Responses of pupils : No. giving 

a. fluent topical recitations 



b. word or phrase responses 

c. sentence responses 

d. incoherent responses 

e. failing to answer 



(If impossible to give number for b, c, 
and d, indicate to what extent responses 
were choppy or incoherent) 
6. Evidence of teaching ability as shown by 
(Check V). 

a. Extent to which teacher's questions 
are 

(1) thought provoking 

(2) calling for facts 

(3) suggesting the answer 

(4) answered by **yes'' or '*no" 

(5) irrelevant 

(6) not definite — vague 

b. Extent to which material of recita- 
tion is 

(1) confined to text 

(2) within pupil's comprehension 

(3) related to children's lives 
and experiences. 

(4) adapted to children's pres- 
ent and future needs. 

(5) worth while 

279 



TEACHING EFFICIENCY 

c. Extent to which the teaching 

(1) is rambling 

(2) is formal, mechanical 

(3) stimulates initiative of pupils 

(4) requires independent think- 
ing 

(5) develops pupils' resource- 
fulness 

(6) requires co-operation of pu- 
pils. 

(7) is fixed on essentials 

(8) requires pupils to organize 
material 

(9) utilizes children's experi- 
ences 

(10) clears up pupils' difficulties 

(11) shows use of material in solu- 
tion of present or future 
problems 

S. Extent to which pupils 

(1) had a clear idea of purpose 
of lesson 

(2) were self-reliant 

(3) tested their own solutions 

(4) acted and thought on their 
own account 

(5) cooperated with the teacher 
and classmates 

(6) persisted in getting desired 
result 

(7) differentiated between essen- 
tials and non-essentials 

(8) organized their material 

(9) seemed well grounded in pre- 
vious work 

280 



OHIO STATE SCHOOL SURVEY 

e. Correction of essential errors 

(1) Describe method used 

(2) Are non-essential errors too 
much emphasized? 

(3) What record is kept of re- 
curring errors likely to re- 
tard progress of pupils? 

7. No. of pupils 

not reciting — reciting once — twice — 
three times — more than three times — 

8. Was the assignment (Check V) 

a. definite and clear ? 

b. related to present lesson? 

c. such that the pupils were prepared 
to attack it intelligently ? 

d. formal — from text-book? 

e. by topics or problems ? 

f. hastily made at dismissal? 

g. omitted? 

D. No. OF PUPILS IN ROOM BUT NOT IN RECITING SEC- 
TION 

No. industrious indolent 

No. minding their own business 

No. interfering with others 

E. Subjects 

1. Reading 2. Writing 

3. Grammar 4. Language 

5. Spelling 6. Arithmetic 

7. Geography 8. Civics 

9. History 10. Physiology and Hygiene 
11. Music 12. Drawing 
No. of pupils supplied with necessary books — 
No. of pupils not so supplied 



281 



TEACHING EFFICIENCY | 

I 

18. Composition 

a. No. of pupils writing composi- ' 
tions 1 

b. No. of pupils not writing com- j 
positions j 

c. Total no. of words in composi- 
tions j 

d. No. of mistakes in spelling ! 

e. No. of mistakes in grammar ; 

f . No. of mistakes in punctuation 

g. No. of mistakes in capitalization 

h. No. of papers well written i 

i. No. of papers legibly written I 

j. No. of papers illegibly written ; 

k. No. of cases of incomplete sen- 
tences 

1. No. of cases of sentences run to- j 

gether j 

m. No. of pupils showing inability 1 

to paragraph correctly I 

n. Ave. mark in spelling at last ■ 

report > 

o. Ave. mark in writing at last 

report , 

Remarks j 

F. Errors and good points (Check V) ] 

1. Errors i 

a. Repeating answers \ 

b. Repeating questions i 

c. Leading questions I 

d. Questions requiring Yes and No j 
answers only j 

e. * Pumping ' questions 

f . Unnecessary telling 
g. No topical recitations 

h. Teacher teaches from book 

282 



OHIO STATE SCHOOL SURVEY 

i. Pupils recite in words of book, etc. 
j. Teacher unnecessarily interrupts 

pupils' recitations 
k. Insufficient emphasis on vital points 
(Take notes of actual blackboard work 
— good, fair and poor) 

2. Good points 

a. Frequent legitimate questions by 
pupils as to (1) What? (2) How? 
(3) Where? (4) Why? (5) 
When? 

b. Pupils at blackboard 

c. Work at board neat 

d. Teacher insists on clear and distinct 
enunciation 

e. Initiative taken by pupils 

(Note any other striking points. 
Underline teacher's favorite subject) 

G. Qualifications of the teacher 

1. Teacher's age Sex Grade of cer- 

tificate 

2. Length of professional training in months — 

3. Character of professional training: Nor- 

mal school, normal college, college of 
education, summer courses, other 
(Underline) 

4. Length of academic training in months 

Elementary High College 

5. Length of teaching service in months 

6. Length of service in present school up to 

September, 19 — , in months 

7. Length of present contract in months 

8. What educational periodicals does the 

teacher read? 



283 



TEACHING EFFICIENCY 

9. What professional works has the teacher 
read this year? 
10. What other lines of self -improvement is the 
teacher following? 

H. Records and reports 

1. Are visits of parents and supervisors re- 

corded ? 

2. Is the length of each visit recorded? 

3. Is tardiness recorded? Causes? How? 

4. Are absences recorded ? Causes ? How ? 

5. Are ' beginners ' indicated in the records ? 

6. Are causes of leaving school, dropping out, 

recorded ? 

7. Are continuous pupil record cards kept ? 

8. Are the records and reports carefully kept ? 

9. Are they easily accessible ? 

10. Are they in good condition as to neatness 
and order? 

I. Health regulations 

1. Periods per week of class work required 

of normal pupils 

2. Hours per week of study in school outside 

of class periods 

3. Hours per week of home study required 

4. Minutes per day of rest and recess 

periods 

5. Hours per week of organized exercise and 

athletics 

6. No. of pupils taking part regularly in ex- 

ercise in gymnasium on field 



284 



BOOKS BY FELIX ARNOLD, Ph. D. 

PRINCIPAL PUBLIC SCHOOL, NEW YORK 



1. SPECIAL METHODS OF INSTRUCTION. Vol. I. 



Model lessons in arithmetic, reading, phonics, 
spelling, dictation, language forms, grammar, 
composition, geography, history, and study of 
nature. 



Published by S. Mandel, 27 St. Nicholas Place 

New York City 



8 vo. Cloth Binding. 416 Pages 

Price, $1.65 
^Z. OUTLINE HISTORY OF EDUCATION. 



Outlines for students preparing for examinations 
for license, etc. 

Published by S. Mandel, 27 St. Nicholas Place 
New York City 



12 mo. Cloth Binding. 109 Pages. 

Price, 50 Cents 
3. SCHOOL AND CLASS MANAGEMENT. 



Vol. I. Supervision and Class Management. 
12 mo. Cloth. 409 pages. 

Price, $1.25 



Vol. II. Administration and Hygiene. 12 mo. 
Cloth. 288 pages. 

Price, $1.00 



The MacMillan Co. New York City 



